Illinois’ Most Underrated Museum Brings Groundbreaking History To Life

Illinois is filled with amazing museums that are packed with interactiveness and fun. However, this one museum in Springfield brings triumph and tragedy to life and goes above and beyond to tell visitors a story.

I'm a massive history lover; it was passed down to me from my Grandpa and he and I could talk about it for hours. Every museum we'd visited together, we'd geek out over the smallest of things. One of them literally being a plate from the Titanic haha.

Since moving here, everyone I've spoken to talks about the museums in Chicago. I decided to visit the ones in The Windy City, but I had this deep need to make a trip to Springfield to see Abe Lincoln's house and the Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. And maybe it's just me, but Lincoln knocked the Chicago museums out of the park!

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum

I mean it when I tell you they take you through each walk of Abe Lincoln's life. There are theatres to watch shows, a walk-through museum dedicated to his childhood, and then another walk-through museum dedicated to his presidency. The family sits right out front to greet you as you enter the White House even!

I like to read and immerse myself in everything while I'm there, so I didn't get as many pictures as I'd like. But Iearned so many things that I didn't know before about this guy. I had no idea that he taught himself to read and practice math, no idea that he watched 2 of his children die, and no idea how many times he lost elections before becoming President of the United States.

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Hearing and being inside of the high highs and low lows that this family went through was enough to choke me up a bit. I also didn't know that they had taken a mold of his face while he was in office. This was done shortly before he was assassinated.

Yes, those exhibits were so inspiring to go through. It brings history that we learned about in school to life. But the coolest part was actually getting to explore his home in Springfield. The one and only home he'd ever owned in his life and lived in before moving to Washington D.C. Check it out!

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They actually let you go inside and explore the house too, which was probably one of the coolest things I'd ever experienced. Getting to be in the specific room where he was asked to run for President sent chills down my spine.

If you're looking to get out and explore, I definitely cannot recommend this spot enough. It's a moving and fun experience that I think many should enjoy.