The Illinois Chapter of the Lincoln Highway Association will have its own Centennial Celebration on Saturday and Sunday, May 18th & 19th, with a series of events to fit any schedule! Attend both days or choose from events throughout either day.
Anyone is welcome to join us in this once-in-a-lifetime event! The public is very welcome to attend! Two events are free!!
Sign up now! Click here for the registration form:
Events will include a road tour (1913 style–leave your GPS at home!) , and a fun birthday bash at the Egyptian Theatre on Saturday, May 18th at 7:30 p.m. that will be open to the public!
The road tour will include places not seen during the June 2010 LHA Annual Conference. See a detailed list of sights on the road tour below.
There is a block of hotel rooms reserved at the Best Western Inn & Suites DeKalb for Saturday, May 18 with a complimentary breakfast Sunday morning. For reservations at the discounted rate of $79, call the hotel directly at: 815-758-8661 by May 4 and mention the Lincoln Highway.
Carl Fisher and Alice Ramsey are coming in 2013. Will you be there, too?
Save the dates! May 18 & 19, 2013!!1913 – 2013
The Centennial Celebration of the Lincoln Highway is coming to Illinois soon!
Do not miss once-in-a-lifetime events for 2013!
Saturday, May 18th
Fulton: Start your tour along the Mississippi and see a working windmill.
Morrison: Do not miss a scenic covered bridge!
Lunch on your own
Sterling: Meet at 1:00 p.m. for a special tour of the Lincoln-Manahan Home, where Lincoln once stayed along what became the Lincoln Highway.
Dixon: See the unique statue of Lincoln.
Franklin Grove: Visit the Lincoln Highway Association National Tourism Headquarters and see the 2nd Annual Lincoln Highway Car (and Motorcycle and Truck) Show! A registration form can be found as a PDF here.
Ashton: Optional driving of an original section of the Lincoln Highway that is still gravel.
Rochelle: See a restored Standard Oil Station and a Railroad Museum.
Creston: Optional dinner catered by Headon’s of Creston inside the Creston Opera House. Lyle Headon will give a talk about the Lincoln Highway in Creston, known for its water fountain and a peculiar route through the town.
Malta: An historical marker, a gazebo, and a mural all commemorate the First Seeding Mile and provide opportunities for pictures.
DeKalb: There will be a photo opportunity at Annie’s Woods, formerly a Free Auto Camp.
Do not miss the 100th Birthday Bash at the Egyptian Theatre, with a special music concert by the Irish/American duo Switchback at 7:30 p.m.! Carl Fisher himself will be attending, along with Alice Ramsey, the first woman to drive a car across the United States.
Sunday, May 19th
Cortland: Stop at the mural for a photo opportunity.
Maple Park: Drive the original Lincoln Highway or take the second generation alignment.
Geneva: Take a leisurely walk in the historic district and see one-of-a-kind shops. Stop at the Fabyan Villa Museum along the beautiful Fox River.
Lunch on your own
Batavia: This picturesque town offers plenty of photo opportunities.
Mooseheart: This home for the children of deceased Moose members shares its Centennial in 2013 with the Lincoln Highway.
Aurora: Do not miss the restored Phillips Park and Auto Row.
Drive the original route following some ‘stair stepping’ or the second generation realignment.
Plainfield: Lincoln Highway and Route 66 merge for a section.
Joliet: Visit the Joliet Area Historical Museum and see where the Father Road (Lincoln Highway) is crossed by the Mother Road (Route 66).
New Lenox: Photo opportunity of a concrete marker
Dinner on your own
Frankfort: Hear Cynthia Ogorek talk about her book, “The Lincoln Highway Around Chicago,” and find out about the use of the Lincoln Highway by bootleggers and mobsters during Prohibition from Matthew J. Luzi, author of “The Boys in Chicago Heights: The Forgotten Crew of the Chicago Outfit.”
See Matteson and where Carl Fisher’s other road, the Dixie Highway, crosses the Lincoln Highway in Chicago Heights.
