Special Issues

If you’re looking to get into the maze craze this fall, we have great news — Springfield will host its very own 10-acre corn creation. If that’s not enough, it’s even cut into the shape of Abraham Lincoln’s face to tie in the capital city’s Bicentennial celebration. Eric Hansen, pastor of the iWorshipCenter, came up […]

No kids allowed. It’s a strict requirement of Garret Moffett’s new October tour, “R-Rated Springfield.” “If you enjoy TV shows like ‘The Sopranos,’ then you will enjoy this,” says Moffett, the owner of Springfield Walks. “It’ll be fairly mature subject matter — we’ll be talking about murder and some rapes.” Moffett wanted something new for […]

While there is no shortage of great prep gridiron action or NFL team spirit in Springfield, the capital city’s offering of college football leaves something to be desired. Sure, Urbana-Champaign and Memorial Stadium are a quick jaunt, but after last year’s trip to the Rose Bowl, Illini tickets are at a premium. If you’re ready […]

Determined to put an end to the rumor that there’s nothing to do in central Illinois, we reached out across the region to identify a bevy of fairs, festivals, concerts, art exhibits and historic events sure to entertain, enlighten and educate. We hope you enjoy our 2008 Fall Guide Calendar and the hundreds of listings […]

Despite local opposition, in 1929 Henry Ford bought and dismantled the courthouse in Postville and had it set up again at his Greenfield Village in Dearborn, Mich. The courthouse became more valuable to the community when they learned they were going to lose it, says Shirley Bartelmay, coordinator of the Postville Courthouse State Historic Site […]

By now, your summer fling is either nearing an end, you’re thinking about taking the relationship to the next level, or the thought of spending the holiday season alone is depressing the heck out of you. Luckily, Springfield and central Illinois host an array of autumn activities and locales that are perfect for one last […]

Many days, Mother Nature locks you indoors and keeps you there with her sweltering heat or bone-chilling cold, soul-sapping humidity or ear-warping wind, rain, snow, sleet, thunder, lightning or hail. This time of year, though, she seems to lay down her weapons and summon us outdoors with her most alluring talents – temperatures that are […]

The colorful and raspy-voiced U. S. Sen. Everett McKinley Dirksen died in 1969, but his memory lives on at the Dirksen Congressional Center in Pekin, near Peoria. This is a research center, but a museum, too. The first thing that catches one’s eye is Sen. Everett Dirksen’s desk from his Capitol office. Dirksen, called the […]