I'm sad that I was here on a Sunday afternoon and did not have a chance to properly tour the…read moreinterior of this beautiful home. It's clear that this is a leftover from better days in Cairo, a city that has fallen into deep disrepair like a shopping mall with no tenants. The outside is stunning with well kept grounds including the small gazebo and the brick paths. Even if it's closed for the day, it's still well worth a good walk around. [Review 1242 of 2024 - 197 in Illinois - 22265 overall]

I saw this place on the map and was looking for something to do it was awesome. The tour guide is…read moreso sweet and knowledgeable. He really cares about his job. There's so much to see there. If you have a chance and you like old homes this is a must see. The $8 fee is well worth the money. They were just taking down there Christmas decorations but the place was still impressive. If you can give a call before you go in case he's out that would be great because you don't wanna miss this house.

My motorcycle riding club likes to find family friendly places to eat and visit. One of our members…read morewas here awhile back and suggested we go. We rode up from the Memphis area This is behind a private home. The home owner built it. The fee is $5.00 per person. He and his son built it all. It's a cool place to visit.

This bridge carries I-57 over the Mississippi between Missouri and Illinois. It is a steel truss…read morearch bridge with four lanes (two in each direction). It is 107 feet above the river. This is one of three bridges in the area that cross the Mississippi or the Ohio in Southern Illinois. There is a small sign to indicate the state line in each direction. There is no pedestrian lane and no breakdown lane. The edge of the lane is only about 12 inches from the barrier. If you get stuck here, you're going to be blocking traffic. There is a huge difference in firearm laws between the two states. I stopped just before the bridge, removed my concealed carry gun from the holder, unloaded it, locked it in the case, and put it in the trunk. Sigh. [Review 16296 overall - 96 in Illinois - 1802 of 2021.]

Been through Cairo many times and always enjoy taking a couple minutes to look around. I am sure…read moreit use to be booming in its day. The Historic District does have some pretty elaborate homes. If you are on a road trip take a couple minutes and check it out. Yet, don't go out of your way as the town is pretty small yet they do have a great BBQ joint too!

I've visited multiple historical sites similar to this mound site, across the country. Of all the…read moreexperiences this one stands out for a very specific reason. All the others are just the mounds with their accompanying history explained. This is the first one I've been to that goes above and beyond just seeing a grassy mound and actually has a fully excavated, and protected site within it. I find this fascinating. This type of historical location is only as exciting as the person visiting it wants to make it. Having this extra layer of dirt removed to actually see what's under one of these mounds is much more gratifying. In any event, I think it's important to take a moment and imagine life at the time the mound was created almost 1000 years ago and how different it is from what we experience today, standing in the same spot. This is an excellent site with great documentation and a very friendly and helpful staff. Definitely worth taking an hour out of your day if you're in the area to stop by and experience this place.

Stopped here on our way to explore Cairo staff was wonderful learned a lot about the mystery of the…read morearea

Friday May 16, 2014, Tony and I was visiting this lovely little historical river town in Illinois…read more It reminded me so much of little towns along the Ohio River in Ohio and West Virginia The house was closed the day we were here, so I was able to take some photos and then look them up on the internet to find out the history. Below the History of the home and the connection to the Trail of Tears Buel House, according to local tradition, was a significant site on the Cherokee Trail of Tears. The family of tanner Alexander Buel (?-1894) was said to have fed pumpkin to hungry Cherokee Indians being driven west by the federal government in 1838. The story is probably not true, however, since records indicate that the house was built in 1840. Still, it is a historically significant structure, having been continuously occupied by generations of one family for 146 years. There are indications that over the years Cherokee stopped at Golconda to trade while journeying to visit their former homes in Georgia. The Buel House, along with much of Golconda, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976, as part of the Golconda Historic District. Situated at the base of the Ohio River bluffs, the two-story rectangular square-log structure has one-story additions on the east and north sides of the original building. Also on the site is a restored and furnished log cabin used for interpretive programs by the Pope County Historical Society. A paved lot provides parking facilities. The Pope County Historical Society provides maintenance services for the site and volunteers for guided tours. I would like to go here and check it out and tour the home. It is located down near the Rivers edge on Water Street.

I love Patsy... what a shame of her and the others passing in 1963 due to pilot error. Bless Patsy,…read moreHawkshaw Hawkins and Cowboy Copas. Thank you for the music.

We love you, Patsy!…read more What a moving moment for me to be able to visit the crash site and memorial of Patsy Cline, Cowboy Copas, Hankshaw Hawkins, and Randy Hughes. I was visiting alone, and a random dude in a truck pulled up and parked right next to me, didn't even get out of his truck, so I got a little spooked and didn't get to stay as long as I wanted. I'm so very glad I made the drive out nonetheless.

Driving past, the sign mentioned "Thebes Historic Courthouse" and it rang a loud bell in my mind…read morebut I could not remember why this courthouse was so important. And so I made the turn to check it out. Completed in 1848, the courthouse is in the Southern Greek Revival style and the view from the porch of the famous Thebes Bridge (reviewed separately) and the Mighty Mississippi River (also reviewed separately) is tremendous. Inside, this classic structure are two hundred years of history, artifacts, photographs and some very helpful and friendly ladies who are more than happy to talk. Abraham Lincoln visited the courthouse when he was a frontier lawyer. One of the more infamous Supreme Court cases began its journey here when fugitive slave Dred Scott was imprisoned in the courthouse dungeon. Yeah, that Dred Scott and the ruling from SCOTUS in 1857 was that the US Constitution did not extend American citizenship to people of black African descent. This was thankfully overturned by the Civil War and the Fourteenth Amendment. [Review 1247 of 2024 - 201 in Illinois - 22270 overall]

In Sept 2015, Noel, Tony and I started on a road trip with Sammi from Nashville TN to Skull, KS. On…read morethe way, we saw this sign for a Historical Courthouse overlooking the Mississippi River. So we had to stop. This courthouse is had something to do with the very important Dredd Scott trial. The courthouse was closed but I got some really great photos of the courthouse. It had a great location on the Mississippi River. There is nothing left of this important River Port Town..but I just wonder what it all looked like? Sitting high atop a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River in Thebes, Illinois is the 1848 Courthouse. Standing 165 years, it is a testament to architect Henry Ernst Barkhausen, who was awarded the contract for designing and supervising the erection of the Thebes Courthouse in 1845. This landmark was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.

Under renovation but always a nice place for a little side trip…read more Great history lessons when staff on site

Sept 2015, Tony, Noel and I along with our doggie Sammi, went to several State Parks in Missouri…read moreand we stopped at Bollinger Mill State Historic Site to check out the old grist mill and the Burfordville Covered Bridge. The park is FREE to enjoy. The parking lot is full of trees and gravel and makes for a nice shaded area. There are picnic tables and NO grills but you can bring a picnic basket with food in it. We walked around the grist mill and the Covered bridge. It is a very lovely park and easy to find once you put in the GPS information. History of the Bollinger Grist Mill. The Bollinger Mill State Historic Site is a state-owned property preserving a mill and covered bridge that pre-date the American Civil War in Burfordville, Cape Girardeau County, Missouri. The park was established in 1967 and offers mill tours and picnicking. It is managed by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources Mill History: In 1797, George Frederick Bollinger received a land grant from the Spanish Government and moved with several other families from North Carolina to what is now Burfordville, Missouri.[4] In 1800, Bollinger began building a log dam and mill on the Whitewater River. In 1825, Bollinger rebuilt the mill and dam using limestone. After Bollinger's death in 1842, his daughter Sarah Daugherty and her sons continued to operate the mill until the Civil War, when the mill was burned by the Union army in order to prevent the supply of flour and meal to the Confederate army. Following the war, the mill site was sold to Solomon R. Burford. The current four-story brick mill was completed by Burford in 1867 and is built upon the limestone foundation of the 1825 building. Burford owned the mill until 1897, when the Cape County Milling Company took over operations and continued operating the mill until 1953 when the mill was sold to the Vandivort family, relatives of George Bollinger. The mill was donated to the Cape Girardeau County Historical Society in 1961 and to the State of Missouri in 1967.[3] Three years later, the mill was added to the National Register of Historic Places