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| Beale Street - not busy on a hot day |
After
Little Rock we went to
Memphis where we spent
the better part of a day on
Beale Street. We thought it would be longer and thought it would be more crowded. We got lucky that it was not the least bit crowded during the day. We started at the Rock and
Soul Museum
which gives a comprehensive history of music in
Memphis. It is very well done at a reasonable
price and a good place to start. We then walked up
Beale Street going into places like the A.Schwab dry goods store which opened in 1876. We ended up sitting and enjoying
some live music at BB Kings Blues Club.
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| Illinois Old State Capitol |
From
Memphis we took a couple
days to drive to
Springfield
Illinois. We went to a number of
places in
Springfield
starting with the
Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum. This is a
relatively new museum (2005) and is really nice and well done. It is not your
typical museum with lots of artifacts but rather is one that tells the story of
Lincolns life
and presidency through high-tech displays and a Disney style film presentation.
 |
| Old State Capitol - second floor |
We also toured the
Old State Capitol which was
fantastic. Completed in 1840 and used until 1876 as the Capitol, it has been
fully restored and furnished with period furnishings. This is a wonderful
building ranking among the best old state capitols we've toured (and we've done
most of them).
 |
| Old State Capitol - House Chamber |
Then there is the current
Illinois State Capitol. They started using it in 1876 but it was not completed until 1888. From the
moment you walk in the door you are saying "wow". You are struck
right away with colorful marble, murals on the ceiling, gold leafing and ornate
carved trim. As you walk around you also see a grand staircase, elaborate
columns, paintings, statues and relief scenes. This is a building to go out of
your way to see and it ranks in our top 5 of the 45 Capitols we've toured.
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| Illinois State Capitol |
 |
| Illinois State Capitol rotunda |
Wait, there's a lot more. Another impressive site in
Springfield is the
Lincoln Home National Historic Site. This historic site's main
attraction is the home that Abraham Lincoln lived in from 1884 to 1861 and is
the only home he ever owned. The world was blessed that Abraham Lincoln's son,
Robert, donated the home to the State of
Illinois
in 1887. With it came many of the furnishings used by the
Lincoln family. The home is now owned and
operated by the National Park Service which has subsequently purchased and is
restoring the entire neighborhood surrounding
Lincoln's home. This is a gem, a remarkable
place.
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| Lincoln Home |
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| Lincoln Home Parlor |
 |
| Lincoln Home sitting room |
Our final stop in
Springfield
was to tour the
Dana-Thomas Home which was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. This
was one of Wright's first major Prairie-style houses. It is a very unique home with an interesting story. You can only see it by taking a guided tour but you want to do that anyway to get the full story. Pictures are not allowed inside so click on the link to see some because I have none to share. We really enjoyed
the tour.
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| Illinois State Capitol House Chamber |
 |
Illinois State Capitol dome
Note the relief sculpture around the base |
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