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Illinois Tourist Attractions No One Knows About

Illinois Tourist Attractions No One Knows About
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  • Post #91 - May 4th, 2008, 12:25 pm
    Post #91 - May 4th, 2008, 12:25 pm Post #91 - May 4th, 2008, 12:25 pm
    Mike G wrote:Chester Gould/Dick Tracy Museum in Woodstock closing in June, also.


    Chester Gould retired 30+ years ago and has been dead for 20+. While there were a number of real Dick Tracy fans who would make an appearance at the museum, the overwhelming response among most less than 55 or 60 years old was "Who's Dick Tracy?"

    They plan to keep the museum on-line and to show a small portion of the art at the old Court House.
  • Post #92 - May 4th, 2008, 8:00 pm
    Post #92 - May 4th, 2008, 8:00 pm Post #92 - May 4th, 2008, 8:00 pm
    Image

    Well, I'm not going to say the Chester Gould-Dick Tracy Museum entirely justifies an hour-long drive out to Woodstock. Two rooms of... well... mostly flat memorabilia from a guy in flat media, although the cases of toys were pretty cool, at least to someone who has Pruneface and Flat Top toys from the Warren Beatty movie among his Christmas ornaments (we kinda did an Uncle Fun inexpensive-kitschy tree when I first moved here, which has only slowly seen its sillier items be retired in favor of "proper" ornaments like a glass Worf... but I digress):

    Image

    On the way, somewhere on Rt. 47 in Huntley, we spotted a 50s-style hamburger stand:

    Image

    called Dairy Mart and stopped there for a couple of burgers and a chocolate shake. Not all that great, but at least it's a new old stand to have visited, which always makes me happy...

    ...and slowly I realized that I had been there before, improbable as that may seem, discovering it on my way back from some radio spots I did at a radio station in Crystal Lake for a client in Barrington a couple of years earlier. Normally my encyclopedic memory for restaurants would have prevented a repeat visit to a place not that special, but I guess I was off my mental grid, out there in the far far burb-boonies.

    On the way back we saw a farmstand/garden center/country tchotchke shop called Red Barn, also on 47 between Huntley and Woodstock, advertising "Fresh Asparagus." I popped in wondering what else besides asparagus they might possibly have this early in the season. Well, apart from canned stuff and potatoes and onions for planting, they had... fresh asparagus. So I bought some.

    Not the most productive expedition we ever took, but hey, nobody'd called us with a better idea for a sunny Sunday afternoon, so it did just fine.

    Fantagraphics is reprinting Dick Tracy year by year, as they've also started doing for Peanuts, Popeye, etc. By all reports, it takes till about vol. 3 or 4 before you get into prime stuff involving classic villains, so feel free to start there. Myles was reading Vol. 3-- Tracy vs. the Leninesque Boris Arson-- as we drove there.
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  • Post #93 - September 9th, 2008, 2:17 pm
    Post #93 - September 9th, 2008, 2:17 pm Post #93 - September 9th, 2008, 2:17 pm
    Hi,

    The following locations are scheduled to close this fall with no known date they will reopen. You may want to call in advance before heading out to them:

    STATE HISTORIC SITES - Closing October 1st
    — Dana-Thomas House, Springfield
    — Lincoln log cabin near Charleston
    — David Davis mansion, Bloomington
    — Fort de Chartres, Randolph County
    — Vandalia statehouse
    — State center at Bishop Hill, Henry County
    — Carl Sandburg birthplace, Galesburg
    — Cahokia courthouse
    — Bryant Cottage, Bement
    — Jubilee College, near Peoria
    — Apple River Fort, Elizabeth
    — Fort Kaskaskia, Randolph County
    — Pierre Menard home, Randolph County

    STATE PARKS - Closing November 1st
    — Castle Rock State Park, Oregon
    — Lowden State Park, Oregon
    — Hennepin Canal Parkway State Park, Sheffield
    — Illini State Park, Marseilles
    — Channahon Parkway State Park, Channahon
    — Gebhard Woods State Park, Morris
    — Hidden Springs State Forrest, Strasburg
    — Kickapoo State Park, Oakwood
    — Moraine View State Park, Leroy
    — Weldon Springs State Park, Clinton
    — Wolf Creek State Park, Windsor

    Regards,
    Cathy2

    "You'll be remembered long after you're dead if you make good gravy, mashed potatoes and biscuits." -- Nathalie Dupree
    Facebook, Twitter, Greater Midwest Foodways,
  • Post #94 - September 9th, 2008, 3:34 pm
    Post #94 - September 9th, 2008, 3:34 pm Post #94 - September 9th, 2008, 3:34 pm
    By the way, have they ever reopened the Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago? I was a member up until they closed down an excellent museum at the Chicago Cultural center to move to a bigger site that has not reopened.
  • Post #95 - September 9th, 2008, 3:58 pm
    Post #95 - September 9th, 2008, 3:58 pm Post #95 - September 9th, 2008, 3:58 pm
    jlawrence01 wrote:By the way, have they ever reopened the Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago? I was a member up until they closed down an excellent museum at the Chicago Cultural center to move to a bigger site that has not reopened.


    As far as I know, no. The sticking point is money. They were promised funding by the state of Illinois, which has not yet come to be. I heard there were leans on the property, which has to be unpleasant.

    There is an institution in my vicinity who proceeded to acquire and refurbish a facility based on promises for state money. They are up to their ears in crocodiles because that money never came to be.

    I have two friends who are starting museums of very different areas of interest. One is relying on private funding to get it going and for ongoing support. The other is hoping for more public support, though I keep pointing to the Broadcasting Museum as what can happen. I estimate if a politically well connected person like Bruce Dumont is having problems, how can my considerably less politically well connected friends fare better?

    Regards,
    Cathy2

    "You'll be remembered long after you're dead if you make good gravy, mashed potatoes and biscuits." -- Nathalie Dupree
    Facebook, Twitter, Greater Midwest Foodways,
  • Post #96 - September 10th, 2008, 7:10 am
    Post #96 - September 10th, 2008, 7:10 am Post #96 - September 10th, 2008, 7:10 am
    Cathy2,

    That is what I expected. I could never understand why they were not content with a small, highly visible location in the Cultural Center.

    I have a bad feeling that it will be years before they return.
  • Post #97 - September 10th, 2008, 7:21 am
    Post #97 - September 10th, 2008, 7:21 am Post #97 - September 10th, 2008, 7:21 am
    The Dana Thomas House is a cultural tresure-
    it is one of Frank llyod Wright's most beautiful creations
    "If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay home."
    ~James Michener
  • Post #98 - September 10th, 2008, 9:15 am
    Post #98 - September 10th, 2008, 9:15 am Post #98 - September 10th, 2008, 9:15 am
    Cathy2 wrote: if a politically well connected person like Bruce Dumont is having problems, how can my considerably less politically well connected friends fare better?


    Perhaps by having less ambitious plans and not relying on the promises of politicians who may get voted out of office before making good.
    Steve Z.

    “Only the pure in heart can make a good soup.”
    ― Ludwig van Beethoven
  • Post #99 - September 10th, 2008, 9:22 am
    Post #99 - September 10th, 2008, 9:22 am Post #99 - September 10th, 2008, 9:22 am
    stevez wrote:
    Cathy2 wrote: if a politically well connected person like Bruce Dumont is having problems, how can my considerably less politically well connected friends fare better?


    Perhaps by having less ambitious plans and not relying on the promises of politicians who may get voted out of office before making good.


    Or simply offer lip service.

    The Broadcasting Museum is not the only place high on optimism and getting the rug pulled from underneath. I really liked their original location and very sorry they got themselves twisted up like this.

    Regards,
    Cathy2

    "You'll be remembered long after you're dead if you make good gravy, mashed potatoes and biscuits." -- Nathalie Dupree
    Facebook, Twitter, Greater Midwest Foodways,
  • Post #100 - September 10th, 2008, 9:30 am
    Post #100 - September 10th, 2008, 9:30 am Post #100 - September 10th, 2008, 9:30 am
    Cathy2 wrote:Hi,

    The following locations are scheduled to close this fall with no known date they will reopen. You may want to call in advance before heading out to them:

    STATE HISTORIC SITES - Closing October 1st
    — Dana-Thomas House, Springfield
    — Lincoln log cabin near Charleston
    — David Davis mansion, Bloomington
    — Fort de Chartres, Randolph County
    — Vandalia statehouse
    — State center at Bishop Hill, Henry County
    — Carl Sandburg birthplace, Galesburg
    — Cahokia courthouse
    — Bryant Cottage, Bement
    — Jubilee College, near Peoria
    — Apple River Fort, Elizabeth
    — Fort Kaskaskia, Randolph County
    — Pierre Menard home, Randolph County

    STATE PARKS - Closing November 1st
    — Castle Rock State Park, Oregon
    — Lowden State Park, Oregon
    — Hennepin Canal Parkway State Park, Sheffield
    — Illini State Park, Marseilles
    — Channahon Parkway State Park, Channahon
    — Gebhard Woods State Park, Morris
    — Hidden Springs State Forrest, Strasburg
    — Kickapoo State Park, Oakwood
    — Moraine View State Park, Leroy
    — Weldon Springs State Park, Clinton
    — Wolf Creek State Park, Windsor

    Regards,


    In Marseilles a petition campaign has begun to try to save Illini State Park by residents of my adopted home town. I hope other cities with the places slated for closing are doing the same.

    I have heard that the places on the list are located in areas of the state that have reps that did not vote along with Blago. A littel retribution for not follwing his plan for Illinois

    My advise, call Blago's office in Springfield(not that he is ever there), or call his Chicago office and stand up and be counted to try to save these places from closure, simply for political purposes.
  • Post #101 - September 10th, 2008, 1:48 pm
    Post #101 - September 10th, 2008, 1:48 pm Post #101 - September 10th, 2008, 1:48 pm
    jimswside,

    You're comments parallel what I have heard on the museum-parks grapevine.

    Regards,
    Cathy2

    "You'll be remembered long after you're dead if you make good gravy, mashed potatoes and biscuits." -- Nathalie Dupree
    Facebook, Twitter, Greater Midwest Foodways,
  • Post #102 - September 10th, 2008, 1:55 pm
    Post #102 - September 10th, 2008, 1:55 pm Post #102 - September 10th, 2008, 1:55 pm
    Cathy2 wrote:jimswside,

    You're comments parallel what I have heard on the museum-parks grapevine.

    Regards,


    it appears as if the legislature is going to back door him. I read in the local paper www.mywebtimes.com (an ottawa newspaper), that the legislature is going to vote on a plan to take $250 million from the states special purpose fund to keep the parks, historic sites, and other things on the cut list open. Hopefully it has bipartisan support, and passes.
  • Post #103 - September 12th, 2008, 3:38 pm
    Post #103 - September 12th, 2008, 3:38 pm Post #103 - September 12th, 2008, 3:38 pm
    Not to drag this too far away from food (but it is already). I expect the moderators to eventually step in and tell us to stop lobbying for museums and parks. This topic is very near and dear to me, however. The Illinois Association of Museums is also concerned but can't do very much as their funding has been almost completely slashed too. Please show your support of cultural and natural resources in Illinois by contacting your legislators directly or through one of the myriad petitions now circulating.

    You can visit this website for one of them: http://www.environmentillinois.org

    Museums and parks bring tourism dollars to communities...a lot of tourism dollars. People who visit museums and parks, like us, eat in local restaurants, purchase gasoline locally, and shop in local stores.

    From a foodie perspective, there are a lot of museums I visit because I like exploring for new places to eat or buy local foodstuffs and then want to do "something" else while I'm there. Maybe we need to remind Springfield of this.
    "The only thing I have to eat is Yoo-hoo and Cocoa puffs so if you want anything else, you have to bring it with you."
  • Post #104 - October 5th, 2008, 12:35 pm
    Post #104 - October 5th, 2008, 12:35 pm Post #104 - October 5th, 2008, 12:35 pm
    The Dana-Thomas House will remain open through the end of November.

    http://www.dana-thomas.org/
  • Post #105 - October 6th, 2008, 8:10 am
    Post #105 - October 6th, 2008, 8:10 am Post #105 - October 6th, 2008, 8:10 am
    abe_froeman wrote:The Dana-Thomas House will remain open through the end of November.

    http://www.dana-thomas.org/


    All the historic sites scheduled to close will be open that long. It's to give staff a more appropriate length of time to mothball them. Not particularly good news.
    "The only thing I have to eat is Yoo-hoo and Cocoa puffs so if you want anything else, you have to bring it with you."
  • Post #106 - July 7th, 2009, 8:53 pm
    Post #106 - July 7th, 2009, 8:53 pm Post #106 - July 7th, 2009, 8:53 pm
    Hi,

    Years ago, there was quite a sensation when Jim Onan, who owned a garage construction business and fantasy motel, built his fantasy home: a pyramid.

    To benefit his church, he conducted tours of his pyramid home. I was fully expecting Egyptian style furniture with lots of animal heads bathed in gold leaf. The living room was obviously his wife's territory furnished with cozy, country style furniture in dusty rose and blue.

    For years, you could see the tip of the house over the trees when travelling on either the tollway or 41. For a while, it was covered with a huge tent to either discourage gawkers or maintain the gold leaf. Recently the pyramid house came to mind. I could not recall anyone speaking of it for years.

    I went looking for it recently and quickly found it. There is more information about it here. It is located on Dilley's Road, north of Stearns School Road, in Wadsworth.

    Image

    For those who like their water local and with special attributes, they may be interested in pyramid water:

    Image

    Lingering at the gate to take pictures isn't very welcome here. Yet there are plenty of images on the internet.

    Regards,
    Cathy2

    "You'll be remembered long after you're dead if you make good gravy, mashed potatoes and biscuits." -- Nathalie Dupree
    Facebook, Twitter, Greater Midwest Foodways,
  • Post #107 - July 7th, 2009, 11:20 pm
    Post #107 - July 7th, 2009, 11:20 pm Post #107 - July 7th, 2009, 11:20 pm
    Cathy2 wrote:Hi,

    Years ago, there was quite a sensation when Jim Onan, who owned a garage construction business and fantasy motel, built his fantasy home: a pyramid.

    To benefit his church, he conducted tours of his pyramid home. I was fully expecting Egyptian style furniture with lots of animal heads bathed in gold leaf. The living room was obviously his wife's territory furnished with cozy, country style furniture in dusty rose and blue.

    For years, you could see the tip of the house over the trees when travelling on either the tollway or 41. For a while, it was covered with a huge tent to either discourage gawkers or maintain the gold leaf. Recently the pyramid house came to mind. I could not recall anyone speaking of it for years.

    I went looking for it recently and quickly found it. There is more information about it here. It is located on Dilley's Road, north of Stearns School Road, in Wadsworth.


    For those who like their water local and with special attributes, they may be interested in pyramid water:


    Lingering at the gate to take pictures isn't very welcome here. Yet there are plenty of images on the internet.

    Regards,



    Wasn't there a sphynx as well?
    Ms. Ingie
    Life is too short, why skip dessert?
  • Post #108 - July 7th, 2009, 11:33 pm
    Post #108 - July 7th, 2009, 11:33 pm Post #108 - July 7th, 2009, 11:33 pm
    My husband surprised me on our honeymoon back in 1981 by taking me to the Don Q Inn in Dodgeville, Wisconsin. It is a hotel with fantasy suites, or as they call them, fantasuites. The room he rented was called "The Steeple." It literally was the old steeple from a church in Dodgeville which they erected next to the hotel. It had three floors, each being a separate "room." The lower level was a bathroom which featured a 300 gallon copper tub. The second floor was the bedroom and the third floor was a lounge with a stereo and carpeted walls and ceiling (yuck - kind of "Graceland-like".)

    Other rooms rooms featured the 300 gallon copper tubs or whirlpools. There was a room called "The Swinger" which had a bed suspended by chains. That room is still there, but it looks like most of the others have different themes from what I remember. The most unique feature is a full-size airplane parked in front of the hotel.

    The food, from what I recall, was nothing to write home about. They couldn't even make pancakes. I sent them back and the second batch was just as bad, severely undercooked.

    http://www.fantasuite.com/Location.asp?LocationId=2

    After I finished typing this I looked at the title of the thread and realized it was Illinois Tourist attractions, but this isn't too far and it's a hoot.

    Ms. Ingie
    Ms. Ingie
    Life is too short, why skip dessert?
  • Post #109 - July 8th, 2009, 6:25 am
    Post #109 - July 8th, 2009, 6:25 am Post #109 - July 8th, 2009, 6:25 am
    Ms. Ingie wrote:Wasn't there a sphynx as well?

    I don't recall, though it would be fitting. If you notice his statue of an Egyptian King is up to its knees in gravel. The statue violated height restrictions, so he buried it partially to claim it was now suitable. He may have desired to dress up the property more, but his plans were likely stymied by local government authorities.

    Regards,
    Cathy2

    "You'll be remembered long after you're dead if you make good gravy, mashed potatoes and biscuits." -- Nathalie Dupree
    Facebook, Twitter, Greater Midwest Foodways,
  • Post #110 - July 8th, 2009, 8:41 am
    Post #110 - July 8th, 2009, 8:41 am Post #110 - July 8th, 2009, 8:41 am
    Cathy2 wrote:
    Ms. Ingie wrote:Wasn't there a sphynx as well?

    I don't recall, though it would be fitting. If you notice his statue of an Egyptian King is up to its knees in gravel. The statue violated height restrictions, so he buried it partially to claim it was now suitable. He may have desired to dress up the property more, but his plans were likely stymied by local government authorities.

    Regards,


    Yeah, that's the ticket, the king. Well you know how those local government officials are... :)
    Ms. Ingie
    Life is too short, why skip dessert?
  • Post #111 - July 8th, 2009, 9:51 am
    Post #111 - July 8th, 2009, 9:51 am Post #111 - July 8th, 2009, 9:51 am


    Wow. Thanks for posting that.
  • Post #112 - July 8th, 2009, 10:00 am
    Post #112 - July 8th, 2009, 10:00 am Post #112 - July 8th, 2009, 10:00 am
    Because now you can combine a fantasy nookie getaway with Lands End outlet shopping!
    Watch Sky Full of Bacon, the Chicago food HD podcast!
    New episode: Soil, Corn, Cows and Cheese
    Watch the Reader's James Beard Award-winning Key Ingredient here.
  • Post #113 - July 8th, 2009, 2:16 pm
    Post #113 - July 8th, 2009, 2:16 pm Post #113 - July 8th, 2009, 2:16 pm
    Aaron Deacon wrote:


    Wow. Thanks for posting that.


    Not recommending the place, just think it's bizarre, although the steeple was kind of a cool honeymoon idea; the other rooms are just creepy.
    Ms. Ingie
    Life is too short, why skip dessert?
  • Post #114 - July 8th, 2009, 2:28 pm
    Post #114 - July 8th, 2009, 2:28 pm Post #114 - July 8th, 2009, 2:28 pm
    Ms. Ingie wrote:
    Aaron Deacon wrote:


    Wow. Thanks for posting that.


    Not recommending the place, just think it's bizarre, although the steeple was kind of a cool honeymoon idea; the other rooms are just creepy.

    The really creepy part is the wild west-themed "family room"...while I can appreciate that kids would find that kind of setup amusing, I can't quite picture wanting to have your kids in that hotel.
  • Post #115 - May 16th, 2010, 8:51 pm
    Post #115 - May 16th, 2010, 8:51 pm Post #115 - May 16th, 2010, 8:51 pm
    Hi,

    Today, I drove from Bloomington to Chicago on the old route 66. It was easy to follow the well marked road without stopping the car to puzzle anything out.

    Twenty years ago, this same trip was marked very irregularly. If you had a guidebook, you could follow the road if you had a good navigator riding shotgun.

    Not only is the road better marked today, there are more museums and historical buildings highlighted along the route.

    We drove to the very end at Michigan Avenue and Jackson. It begins at Grant Park at Buckingham Fountain.

    I have driven Route 66 into ARizona stopping at every tourist trap. This is largely because my Dad would never stop for anything less than a national monument. I hope someday to drive to its terminus in Santa Monica. Meanwhile, exploring the Illinois portion can while away a day or weekend.

    I would still get a guidebook to read the background stories.

    Regards,
    Cathy2

    "You'll be remembered long after you're dead if you make good gravy, mashed potatoes and biscuits." -- Nathalie Dupree
    Facebook, Twitter, Greater Midwest Foodways,
  • Post #116 - October 12th, 2010, 5:16 pm
    Post #116 - October 12th, 2010, 5:16 pm Post #116 - October 12th, 2010, 5:16 pm
    Mike G wrote:The graves of Emma Goldman and some of those executed after the Haymarket Riot are in nearby Jewish Waldheim cemetery


    I stopped by the Haymarket Memorial at Waldheim today. Some aging anarchists had recently left mementos: some flowers, half a dozen pennies, an old UAW pin and, most cool, a rusted, worn I.W.W. pin.

    David "Wobbly" Hammond
    "Don't you ever underestimate the power of a female." Bootsy Collins
  • Post #117 - October 18th, 2010, 11:56 am
    Post #117 - October 18th, 2010, 11:56 am Post #117 - October 18th, 2010, 11:56 am
    For something impressive hiding in plain site, I submit the Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool. The entrance is on Fullerton at Cannon Drive. It's been there since 1938 and I stumbled across it by accident while out for a bike ride. Beautiful, peaceful garden hiding in Lincoln Park.
  • Post #118 - October 19th, 2010, 5:43 am
    Post #118 - October 19th, 2010, 5:43 am Post #118 - October 19th, 2010, 5:43 am
    Did the state parks and museums listed in Cathy's 2008 post above eventually get saved? Or are they all gone now? I'm just catching up with this thread--and with the bad news--and the prospect of all those sites being gone horrifies me. I hope that's not how it played out.
  • Post #119 - October 19th, 2010, 4:41 pm
    Post #119 - October 19th, 2010, 4:41 pm Post #119 - October 19th, 2010, 4:41 pm
    delk wrote:Down the street from me....
    Image


    As a Lincoln fan, this post intrigued me so I sought it out on Monday. Online information puts the plaque at 1238 W. Washington, but it seemed more like 1234. Fun to seek out, but made worth the trip by a visit to nearby Grazianos afterward for a sandwich and some groceries--my kind of a One-Two Punch.
    "People sometimes attribute quotes to the wrong person"--Mark Twain
  • Post #120 - October 19th, 2010, 7:16 pm
    Post #120 - October 19th, 2010, 7:16 pm Post #120 - October 19th, 2010, 7:16 pm
    skess wrote:
    delk wrote:Down the street from me....
    Image


    As a Lincoln fan, this post intrigued me so I sought it out on Monday. Online information puts the plaque at 1238 W. Washington, but it seemed more like 1234. Fun to seek out, but made worth the trip by a visit to nearby Grazianos afterward for a sandwich and some groceries--my kind of a One-Two Punch.

    Being a Lincoln fan, have you read Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation? I had a brief hospital stay this past summer, and a friend brought it for me to read and pass time. The topic seemed pretty morbid, particularly to be reading in a hospital bed, but the book was/is hilarious. From the chapter on President Garfield's assassination:

    Sarah Vowell wrote:No plaque marks the spot where Guiteau gunned down Garfield--zip.

    I am pro-plaque. New York is lousy with them, and I love how spotting a plaque can jazz up even the most mundane errand. Once I stepped out of a deli on Third Avenue and turned the corner to learn I had just purchased gum near the former site of Peter Stuyvesant's pear tree. For a split second I had fallen through a trapdoor that dumped me out in New Amsterdam, where in 1647 the peg-legged Dutch governor planted a tree he brought over from Holland; until a fatal wagon accident, it bore fruit for more than two hundred years. To me, every plaque, no matter what words are inscribed on it, says the same magic informative thing: Something happened! The gum cost a dollar, but the story was free.

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