In the Land of Lincoln

A late (but fun) night out made for a later start this morning. We said our goodbyes to Chicago and Dan and headed South. This is Lincoln country, so it only seemed fitting to visit his final resting place in Springfield, IL.



The 16th president was buried in this massive tomb after a national tour of his remains and subsequent theft of said remains.


Not far from the monument, Lincolns home.


The home was sold to the state for a buck, in exchange they agreed to keep it open to the public for free. Mary Todd clearly had little taste.


Most of the furniture belonged to the Lincoln family. The house has been restored to what it likely looked like. It is at this home that Lincoln excepted the nomination for the presidency.
The National Park Service runs it now, and has preserved four blocks of the neighborhood. According to park rangers, there are no direct descendants of Lincoln living today.


The house is just a short distance from the original capital building Lincoln would have visited.


The newer one is even closer.
Two hours further down the road, we crossed the Mississippi River again, this time into Missouri.


Here we stopped to admire the gateway arch in St. Louis, MO. The mammoth arc is a symbol of Western expansion. The city served as the final stop for many pioneers on their way Westward.


While in St. Louis we took advantage of Ron's detailed notes of places we might want to stop and eat. He's been taking notes for years leading up to this moment.


Pappy's Smokehouse near St. Louis University was featured on "Man vs. Food". That's where Ron heard of it.


It is the best BBQ EVER! The owner said to try it without the sauce first. The slow roasted ribs were seasoned with an incredible rub. Throw in the deep fried corn, white bread, baked beans, brisket, cole slaw, and potato salad, and you can see the ribs weren't the only pigs in the place.
With another state ticked off the list, we reconsidered our route going forward. Do we continue on to Nashville, Tennessee? Or, do we head East to Louisville, Kentucky?


We decided to hit Tennessee on our way back West. Meaning were heading back East through Illinois and Indiana tonight. We stopped in Evansville, Indiana and will pick up our adventure again in the morning.

Location:Elpers Rd,Evansville,United States