www.moderntravelermagazine.com

,

Opinions
Illinois Governor Closes State
Historic Sites and State Parks
on Eve of Lincoln Bicentennial

by Sarah Miller

Lincoln Log Cabin State Historic Site, located near Charleston, Ill. was the 1840s home of Thomas and Sarah Bush Lincoln, father and stepmother of Abraham Lincoln. He was a lawyer in Springfield, Ill. when his parents lived at the farm, but he did make periodic visits while traveling through east central Illinois on the 8th Judicial Circuit.

Until recently, Lincoln Log Cabin was one of the main tourist attractions for Coles County. Many area schoolchildren also made trips to the site to immerse themselves in 1845 — dressing up in period clothes and taking part in period tasks.

I myself still fondly remember my time as a fifth grader making Johnny Cakes and dipping

candles over an open fire.

But now, a $2 billion state budget deficit in Illinois has caused the closure of 12 state historic sites and 7 state parks, including Lincoln Log Cabin. Many others have ties to Abraham Lincoln and provide tourism dollars for the communities that have rallied around them. With Lincoln Bicentennial

celebrations approaching in 2009, it is extremely disappointing to see these sites closing.

State legislators, community members and business leaders have voiced their concerns with the park closures since the August announcement. Even Illinois Lt. Governor Pat Quinn has vocally opposed the closures at rallies and on his Web site, www.standingupfor illinois.org.

“This is a bad decision that will have negative impacts to our state, communities, and citizens’ quality of life and health,” Quinn says on his site.

While both the Illinois House and Senate passed legislature to restore $230 million to the budget, Gov. Rod Blagojevich allocated the money to saving only four of the state parks on the chopping block.

The closing of the state parks and historic sites means a major loss of revenue for communities and business throughout the state. According to Illinois Landmarks, an organization that supports historic preservation, there will be a significant decrease in the 2.6 million annual visitors to communities where these historic sites are located and a potential loss of $717 million in tourism dollars for hotels, restaurants, and retail stores statewide due to the closing of the historic sites alone.

In the end, 85 employees of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, the agencies that oversee the state parks and historic sites, clocked in for the last time the Wednesday before

Thanksgiving in anticipation of the December 1 closing date.

Many of the site attendants and volunteers at the parks have spent years teaching visitors, including many school children, about the unique history and environment in Illinois. It will be sad to see these people go at a time when we need these destinations to continue to attract visitors to Illinois.

So what can be done to save and/or re-open the parks? Those interested in Illinois’ natural resources and history should continue to make their views known. Call the governor’s office at (217) 782-0244 or (312) 814-2121. You can also send a message through his Web site: www.illinois.gov/gov/ contactthegovernor.cfm.