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Abraham Lincoln's Courthouse Tour
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Abraham Lincoln's Courthouse Tour
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Springfield is the heart of Lincoln country. Lincoln lived in Springfield from 1837 until 1861. In his nearly 24 years here, the people of city had an enormous impact on his life. While visiting the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, Lincoln’s Home, the Old State Capitol, Lincoln’s Law offices and the Lincoln Depot, visitors will begin to understand how this man grew from a fledgling lawyer to a President. |
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The Old State Capitol is a reconstruction of Illinois’ fifth statehouse, the first to be located in Springfield. The building served as the seat of state government and a center of Illinois political life from 1839 to 1876. During the dramatic years leading to the Civil War, the building had an important role in the political struggle between Stephen A. Douglas (1813-1861) and Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865). Lincoln visited the building frequently as both a lawyer and a politician, serving in the building during his last term in the Illinois House of Representatives and delivering the famous 1858 “House Divided” speech in Representatives Hall, and using the governor’s rooms as a headquarters during the 1860 presidential campaign. The building was the scene of the assassinated President’s final laying-in-state on May 3-4, 1865. |
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Visitors to the Old State Capitol may take a 30-minute interpreter-conducted tour or view the rooms on their own. Also available are a 15-minute orientation video on the building’s history. The building is fully accessible to persons with disabilities.
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The Lincoln-Herndon Law Offices are within the only remaining building in which Abraham Lincoln maintained a law office. The site consists of the surviving portion of a three-story brick commercial block constructed in 1840-41. Exterior details reflect the then-popular Greek Revival architectural style. Though designed as a commercial structure, portions of the building were rented for offices and other purposes. Lincoln practiced law in the building from 1843 to about 1852. During his 1847-1849 tenure as a United States Congressman, partner William H. Herndon (1818-1891) maintained the practice. In 1978 the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a part of the Central Springfield Historic District. |
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After viewing an orientation video, visitors receive a twenty-minute guided tour of the historic rooms. On Wednesdays during the summer months, a costumed interpreter portrays Lincoln’s law clerk. Exhibits in the visitor center provide information on Lincoln’s legal career and life on the Eighth Judicial Circuit. The building is fully accessible to persons with disabilities. The Tinsley Dry Goods Store gift shop is contiguous to the Lincoln-Herndon building.
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Beardstown sits on the Illinois River and was first settled in 1819 which makes it one of the oldest towns in Illinois. Beardstown was founded by Thomas Beard, who was originally from Granville, New York. It was not until Beard, for whom the town was named, started a ferry service crossing the Illinois River in 1826 that the move towards becoming a town was made. |
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Beardstown sits on the Illinois River and was first settled in 1819 which makes it one of the oldest towns in Illinois. Lincoln argued many cases in the Beardstown Courthouse, including his best known-“The Almanac Trial”. Lincoln was also installed here as a Captain of the Sangamon County Company during the Black Hawk War. During the senate race of 1858 he spoke to the people of Beardstown on the city square. Stephen A. Douglas had spoken prior to Lincoln’s speech.
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The heart of Metamora is its beautiful square in front of the courthouse, still used today for local celebrations as it was when Lincoln, the circuit riding lawyer, passed through town. Weekends are full of events on the square like bank concerts, dances and Civil War re-enactments.
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The Metamora Courthouse was built in 1845 and served as the center of county government until the county seat was moved to Eureka in 1896. It is one of two surviving courthouses on the historic Eighth Judicial Circuit traveled by Abraham Lincoln. In 1978 the Courthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
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Lincoln probably spent more time in Bloomington than any other city in Central Illinois outside of Springfield. He had many close political and legal associates from this area, including David Davis whose influence on his legal career and run for the presidency were crucial to Lincoln’s success. Your tour of the David Davis Mansion will reveal just how this happened as well as what life was like for a wealthy Victorian family. The The McLean County Museum of History rounds out the Lincoln story by introducing the city and the people that Lincoln would have known. Maps for walking tours featuring historical markers and notable architecture are available at the museum. |
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McLean County History Museum Housed in a magnificent old courthouse on the National Register of Historic Places, the museum tells stories of the people of McLean County including many who would have known Lincoln. A permanent exhibit, “Encounter on the Prairie,” exemplifies the theme of the museum through four galleries: People, work, politics and farming. In addition, the museum also features changing exhibits that explore subjects like the Central Illinois and the Civil War plus periodic national traveling exhibits.
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Abraham Lincoln couldn’t be any more connected to a city than Lincoln, Illinois. Lincoln, known as the “namesake city” is the only town to be named for Lincoln before he became President. In fact, he christened Lincoln with the juice of a watermelon. His connection with all of Logan County is a rich one. He argued cases while riding the eighth judicial circuit at the Postville Court House, a building which is open to the public. |
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On July 5, 1836, a man named Barton Robinson entered 480 acres of land in what is now Mt. Pulaski Township with he and others who had settled the area several years before. The residents named the new town "Pulaski," in honor of the Revolutionary War hero of the same name was killed in battle in service to George Washington on October 11, 1779. |
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Mount Pulaski Courthouse was built in 1848 and served as the Logan County seat of government until 1855. Attorney Abraham Lincoln regularly argued cases in the second-floor courtroom, helping to establish his reputation as both an accomplished practitioner of the law and a gifted speaker. After the county seat was moved to Lincoln in 1855, the former courthouse was used as a city hall, school, and post office. In 1935 the state purchased the building and began efforts to “restore” it to an 1850s appearance.
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Postville Courthouse is a reproduction of Logan County’s first seat of government. Constructed in 1840, the original building until 1848 was one of the courts in which Abraham Lincoln argued cases while traveling the historic Eighth Judicial Circuit. Long after being converted to residential use, the original courthouse was purchased by Henry Ford and in 1929 moved to his Dearborn, Michigan, Greenfield Village museum. This replica was constructed in 1953 on the original site as part of the city of Lincoln’s centennial celebration.
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The first courthouse, a log cabin, was so crude it saw only two sessions of court in 1836 and 1837. It was replaced in 1840 with a brick and wood frame building that served for the next 9 years. It was in this building that Abraham Lincoln appeared as a lawyer while riding the circuit. The next courthouse, built in 1849, was a two-story building of brick and wood with a bell tower in the center of its roof.
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Danville is the first stop from the East coming from I-74 and for those looking for a unique location, try
picturesque Danville/Vermilion County, ideally located on I-74 in the heart of Central Illinois. For the
history buff-- had you been walking down Vermilion Street in Danville in the early 1850's you very possibly
might have run into a tall, somewhat unkempt, young attorney crossing from his office to the courthouse to
argue a case in the 8th Judicial Circuit. |
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Completed in 2002, this reproduction of an early Danville court house tells of Danville’s rich Lincoln history. He tried over 200 cases in the courts here and had many friends in this community. As visitors enter the museum, the first thing they see is an imposing statue that represents the Lincoln that his friends from Danville would have recognized. The museum also houses a recreation of the law office that Danville attorney Ward Hill Lamon shared with Lincoln, and includes a desk that Lincoln actually used. There are many other fine exhibits in this museum that reflect the history of Vermilion County.
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Macon County has a rich Lincoln history and many Lincoln “firsts.” Decatur was the first
Illinois home of the Abraham Lincoln family, he was first nominated for the presidency at
the state Republican party convention and he made his first political speech in downtown
Decatur. In addition when he rode the circuit he tried several cases in Decatur. The log
courthouse where those cases were heard still exists in the Prairie Village at the Macon
County Historical Society Museum. The museum also features a video called “Lincoln in
Macon County” that tells the story of his relationship to this area. |
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The Macon County Historical Society had its birth on May 25, 1916, when twelve people met in the Decatur Public Library, adopted a constitution, and elected temporary officers. In August, 1916 there was an appeal for members at the Old Settlers’ Picnic for any items of historical interest. The Society had plans “to establish a library of local and state history, to maintain a museum, and to cultivate the historic sense and diffuse knowledge upon these subjects by meeting and publications”. On more than one occasion over the years the Society became inactive and then reorganized. In 1962 several local citizens met to discuss the reactivation of the Society, with meetings being held in Decatur’s old Carnegie Library until the Society purchased the old North Cumberland Presbyterian Church to establish their new museum and a meeting place.
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Taylorville is often referred to as “the last stop” because when Lincoln and his fellow lawyers, including Stephen A. Douglas, rode the 8th judicial circuit Taylorville was often the last place they stopped before going back to Springfield.
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Taylorville, Illinois, is home to the Christian County Courthouse, and county seat. The County Seat was established in 1839. Inside the building, visitors can find a number of actual Lincoln documents on display and assorted displays for Lincoln the Lawyer.
The 1902 courthouse is the county’s third. The first one was built in 1840 and used until 1856. Up until 1853, it was the last stop on Abraham Lincoln’s 8th Judicial Circuit route and where Lincoln reportedly issued a “writ of quietus” to silence the sound of hogs that were disrupting a trial. The original courthouse has been moved to the grounds of the Christian County Historical Museum at Illinois 29 and 48 on Morrison Drive.
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In the 1840’s and 1850’s when Abraham Lincoln rode the 8th judicial circuit, the last stop was in Taylorville, Illinois. While not in its original location on the city square, the first Christian County Courthouse still exists and is now part of The Christian County Historical Museum. The white frame building was built in 1839 and was restored using original specifications for construction. The simple almost crude interior furnishings echo courtrooms of the period when the practice of law was less formal than it is today. The Historical Museum grounds also include a one-room schoolhouse, an 1800’s train depot, a log house dating to the 1820’s and several buildings that include an amazing array of exhibits and artifacts.
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