When you think of inspiring architectural treasures, hiking and biking trails, national historic sites and quaint shopping meccas, Bureau County may not come to mind immediately. But if it doesn’t, you’re probably missing one of Illinois’ best-kept secrets.
Bureau County and Princeton, its county seat, are situated just a two-hour drive west of Chicago on Interstate Highway 80, but their unhurried charms are a world away from big-city bustle. And in a single well-planned day trip, it’s possible to view many of the county’s historical and architectural gems–as long as you don’t linger too long at any one spot.
But that, of course, could be a problem. Once you’ve experienced a bit of Bureau, you may want to postpone your departure. If so, the proprietors of Victorian-era bed-and-breakfasts in Princeton and nearby Tiskilwa and Sheffield are said to be most accommodating.
As a service to Bureau County newcomers, we’ve put together a suggested travel itinerary for those who enjoy motoring down two-lane country roads and exploring out-of-the-way attractions. For a lot of good reasons, the first stop on that itinerary should be Princeton.
Once you exit off I-80 at mile marker 56 and head south on Illinois Highway 26 into Princeton’s two “downtown” districts, there’s no need to again ply an interstate highway until your trip home. Also appealing is the chance to collect literature on the many county attractions. You can do that at the Princeton Chamber of Commerce, located in the Prouty Building, 435 S. Main St.
But the best reason of all to make the county seat your first stop is the assortment of lures this city of 7,200 offers. Tops on your “to-see” list should be the Owen Lovejoy Homestead on Peru Street, a mile from Illinois 26. The 160-year-old home, once a stop on the Underground Railroad, has been restored with period furnishings, and tours are offered from 1-4 p.m. Thursday, Saturday and Sunday from May through September. Call 815-879-9151 for information.
Another Princeton attraction is the Bridge of Bureau County. Better known as the Red Covered Bridge, it’s on Illinois 26 about 1 1/2 miles north of town. Built in 1863 and still in use, the bridge straddles Big Bureau Creek and is one of just five covered bridges remaining in the state. It’s also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Call 815-875-2616 for information.
In addition, Princeton is a city of tempting shopping venues, among them an antique aficionado’s paradise of individual shops and antique malls. Tune your car radio to 1610 AM as you drive into Princeton to hear the chamber’s recorded information on things to do and see in the quaint and historic town.
And don’t forget to visit both the north and south “downtowns.”
Now it’s time to begin your circuit of Bureau County, and you can start by driving west along U.S. Highway 6/34 to Wyanet. Right along Main Street in the town of 1,000 is the Thomas Historical Museum, housed in a low-slung tan building with a green shingle roof.
The museum is a monument of sorts to Henry Thomas, who lived from 1800 to 1843 and was a man of firsts in Bureau County: first white settler, first farmer, father of the first child and first postmaster. The museum’s hours are noon-4 p.m. every day but Monday, Tuesday and holidays.
Continue west on U.S. 6/34 and you’ll soon arrive in Sheffield (population 1,600), home of St. Peters Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church. Nestled in a shady grove of wild oaks at the corner of Cook and Washington Streets one block south of Main Street, the immaculately restored white frame church with pale green shutters and wood plank sidewalk was home to the first Danish Evangelical Lutheran congregation in the United States. Visitors can tour the church from noon-4 p.m. daily, except Monday.
“There are frescoes on the ceiling, early American (framed) artwork on the walls, and we have chandeliers and a pump organ of the period,” said Margaret B. Schmitt, secretary of the Sheffield Historical Society, whose museum stands across the street. Call 815-454-2788 for more information.
By now, it may be time for a short break to commune with nature. One option is to travel west a few miles farther to the town of Mineral. Then go five miles north to a 200-acre nature preserve called the McCune Sand Prairie. Owned by the Bureau County Soil and Water Conservation District, McCune Sand Prairie is open daily year-round. Fully guided tours are offered to school, scouting and other organized groups, said resource conservationist Patrick Schmitt. Call him at 815-879-5251 for information.
Another possibility is to backtrack east on U.S. 6/34 to Illinois Highway 40 north and the visitors center of the Hennepin Canal Parkway State Park. The canal was opened in 1908 and was one of the nation’s first public works projects to employ large-scale use of concrete. Closed to maritime traffic since 1951, it’s now a recreation area.
In the park “there’s beautiful hiking, wonderful mountain biking, and people can also picnic along the route of the canal,” said Judy Jacksohn, site interpretive program coordinator for the park. “You can see the old lock houses and boat repair yards from the early years of this century. There’s also lots of good fishing. It’s a relatively undiscovered area.”
The park is open 24 hours year-round, and the only fee is for camping. Obtain a brochure by writing the park, R.R. 2, Box 201, Sheffield, Ill. 61361, or call 815-454-2328.
Next, drive north on Illinois 40 and take a right at the sign pointing you down a spur road to Manlius, a tiny hamlet of 450 people located a mile east of the highway. At 122 E. Maple St. in Manlius is a building designed by Parker Noble Berry, a Prairie School architect who was the chief designer for Louis Sullivan and who died young, leaving behind only a few examples of his work.
“He designed and built four buildings, and this is the only one still standing,” said Jim Boender, a Manlius resident who now owns the building, which is the former site of the First State Bank of Manlius.
Though the building is not open to the public, visitors can look through the windows and glimpse the original mahogany woodwork and ancient walk-in bank vault.
Now return to Illinois 40 and drive north to Illinois Highway 92, which served as the main thoroughfare between Chicago and Omaha prior to the opening of I-80 in the early 1960s. Head east to a picturesque town of 1,500 called Walnut, the home of Avanti Foods. The company’s complex is spread across three buildings, and at its center is a stunning reproduction of a Swiss chalet.
The chalet is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and offers visitors a chance to shop at the Chalet Cheese and Gourmet Shop for Colby longhorn, Muenster, Swiss, mozzarella and cheddar. Tours of Avanti’s cheese and pizza-making factories can be scheduled in advance. Call 815-379-2155.
Back on Illinois 92, turn east and proceed about 20 miles to the northeast corner of the county and LaMoille, a town of 650 situated just south of Illinois 92 on U.S. 34. On the left as you travel south, you’ll spot a three-story red brick building with the words “Allen School 1887” high on its north side.
One of the oldest schools still operating in the state (it serves 3rd to 8th graders), the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places just last year. Retired school custodian Neal Drummer gives guided tours of Allen School, 301 Main St., by appointment.
“It’s a 19th Century school with a tall bell tower that people have visited with the school’s permission,” he said. “It has maple flooring and walnut banisters with all the nicks and scrapes you’d expect after 110 years of children going through it.” Call the school at 815-638-2233 to contact Drummer for a tour.
Almost directly across the street, at 208 Main St., is a frame house with a narrow porch and brown shutters. Built in 1839 by Dr. John Kendall, one of LaMoille’s founders, it served as both a stop on the Underground Railroad and an inn where Abraham Lincoln stayed during the Lincoln-Douglas debates. Today it’s a private home and closed to the public.
Now drive south on Illinois Highway 89 toward I-80, encountering on your way the town of Cherry, population 550. On the north edge of town in Village Park is the Cherry Mine Disaster Holy Trinity Miners Memorial, dedicated in 1911 by the United Mine Workers.
The memorial commemorates one of the worst mine disasters in U.S. history, in which 259 miners were killed when a lantern ignited a fire within the Cherry Mine on Nov. 13, 1909. Information on the memorial and disaster can be obtained at the Cherry Public Library on South Main Street, which is open Saturday from 9-11 a.m. and Wednesday from 5:30-7 p.m. Librarian Eileen Pinter sells pamphlets on the disaster for $1.25 each.
Just three miles south of Cherry is the entrance back on to I-80 for your trip home. If you find you didn’t manage to shoehorn all of the recommended sights into a single summer’s day of adventure, take heart. Many folks say Bureau County looks even better in the autumn.
