SMITHYS TO PRESIDENTS: SHAPING HISTORY
A Tri-State Tourism Council Driving Tour
Our lives have been shaped by events that occurred in the tri-state region. Explore the sites where inspiring and inspired men and women brought their visions to reality.
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Begin your driving tour at the Stephenson County CVB Information Center on Highway 20 just east of Freeport, Illinois. There you’ll find area maps and brochures, as well as regional displays and helpful travel counselors. Continue west on Highway 20 to downtown Freeport. Visit the Lincoln-Douglas Debate Square, site of the second of the famous 1858 debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas, commemorated by a life-size statue of the two men. At the Stephenson County Historical Museum, tour the1857 Taylor Mansion, a one-room schoolhouse, a log cabin, a farm and industrial museum and arboretum. During select weekends and holidays, climb aboard the Silver Creek and Stephenson Railroad/Silvercreek Museum’s antique train pulled by a steam locomotive for a four mile ride and tour a 1880s replica depot and a historical museum.
Head south on US Highway 26, then east on 64 to the town of Oregon. Follow the Rock River south to the John Deere Historic Site at Grand Detour, where John Deere developed the steel plow in 1837. Visit his home, an archaeological site of his blacksmith shop, a reconstructed blacksmith with working blacksmith and gift shop.
In the Blackhawk Waterways city of Dixon, enjoy a guided tour of Ronald Reagan’s Boyhood Home, now restored to the 1920s period of the future President’s formative years.
Head west on Interstate 88 to Exit 36. US Highway 30 West – also known as the historic Lincoln Highway - leads to Fulton and Heritage Canyon. In the heart of a former rock quarry is an unusual collection of 1800s log cabin, country church, school, covered bridge, waterfalls, and more.
Cross the Mississippi River into Iowa and head north on Highway 67 to Sabula. Stop at the Jackson County Welcome Center, an old-fashioned schoolhouse now home to local visitor information and local craft wares. Travel west to Maquoketa and Banowetz Antique Mall & Showroom. Feast your eyes on furniture, lamps, toys, etc. at one of the largest antique malls in the Midwest.
Following Highway 62 north, stop by the Bellevue Area Chamber of Commerce to pick up information about local attractions, including the Harbor Motel, located on the banks of the Mississippi. Continuing north on Highway 52, stop at Crystal Lake Cave, the Midwest’s largest living cave, for a guided tour of breathtaking crystal formations.
Visit the Dubuque Convention & Visitors Bureau Welcome Center for area maps and information about sites you won’t want to miss. A must see is the Fenelon Place Elevator, the world’s shortest steepest scenic railway, offering a magnificent view of the Mississippi River and all three of the tri-states. Nearby is the Mathias Ham House historic site, a skillfully restored and authentically furnished 1856 mansion now open to the public.
Crossing into Illinois on Highway 20 east, turn north on County ZZ to Sinsinawa Mound Center, where you can explore the life of Fr. Samuel Mazzuchelli. An Italian immigrant, Mazzuchelli’s extraordinary life on the American frontier as a religious leader, educator and architect changed the people and places he touched.
Heading north to Dickeyville, visit the Dickeyville Grotto and Shrines built by Fr. Mattias Wenerus in 1925 of stone, mortar, shells, fossils, ores, gems and objects collected from all over the world.
Continue north to Platteville, where the Chamber of Commerce Information Center can provide helpful maps and area brochures. Or, right across the street, overnight visitors can stay at the Governor Dodge Hotel & Convention Center . Stroll the historic shopping district, and tour an 1845 lead mine at the Mining Museum & Rollo Jamison Museum.
Drive by the world’s largest “M” to The First Capital State Park.
Heading south, you’ll drive through Cuba City, the City of Presidents, where Main Street is lined with Presidential shields from each of the Presidents. Current President George W. Bush made an historic stop in November 2004 and personally signed his shield.
Continuing south toward Benton, just before you enter town stop at the Mazzuchelli historic marker. To the Irish miners who had difficulty with his Italian name, he was “Father Matthew Kelly.” In Benton’s business district, visit Swindlers Ridge Museum on the right. Admire the Mazzuchelli Parish House and St. Patrick’s Church, one of 20 churches he designed and built in the upper Mississippi Valley. Upon his death in 1864, his body was interred in the church cemetery.
Continuing south on Highway 81, stop at the Wisconsin/Illinois state line and Point of Beginnings historic marker for an exhibit detailing the surveying process used in 1832 by Lucias Lyon to open up the northwest territory we now know as Wisconsin for settlement.
Crossing from Wisconsin into Illinois on Highway 81, head east on Highway 20 to Galena, home to the Ulysses S. Grant Home State Historic Site (closed Mondays & Tuesdays). This Italianate home was presented to U.S. Grant, Civil War General, in 1865; Grant later became the 18 th President of the United States. In downtown Galena, a Sunday afternoon stop at the Old Stockade on the Cobblestone Street will acquaint you with the structure built of upright timbers for an early Indian agent; hear how the building and its owners have served Galena for over 175 years. Tools of the trade of the all-important village smithy are on display at the Old Blacksmith Shop at the north end of Galena’s historic district.
Continuing east on Highway 20, drive to the village of Elizabeth and the Apple River Fort State Historic Site. Learn aboutconflict between the local Native Americans and early settlers that grew into the Black Hawk War at thereconstructed fort and interpretive center. Just across the street from the Fort is the Chicago Great Western Railway Depot Museum, where Chicago Great Western Railway history and local artifacts are celebrated. Ask the docent to show you photographs of the nearby Winston Tunnel, the longest underground railroad tunnel in the nation.
East on Highway 20 to Highway 73 and Lena, take the Cedarville Blacktop to the village of Cedarville and the Cedarville Historical Museum(open Sat/Sun 1-4). Located in an 1889 red brick schoolhouse, the museum offers a display honoring Cedarville native Jane Addams, Nobel Peace Prize winner and founder of Chicago’s Hull House.
To return to Freeport, the starting location of your journey, travel 5 miles south on Hwy 26 to intersect with Hwy 20.
You will find hundreds of delightful diversions along this Smithys to Presidents: Shaping History route. If you don’t have time to do them all, we cordially invite you to return another time, perhaps another season.
IF YOU STAY: Tri-State Lodgings
IF YOU DINE: Tri-State Restaurants
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