20 stories, landmarks & places within ~20 miles — the same local lore RoadyGoat plays as you drive through.
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Denhart Bank Building
· Scraped Hmdb
Ever wonder where farmers in Illinois got the money to grow the breadbasket of America? This may have been one of those places. Two brothers, Charles Anthony and Henry Denhart, founded Denhart Bank here in Washington,…
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Dement-Zinser House
· 0.1 mi · Scraped Hmdb
Built in 1858 for a riverboat owner, this Greek Revival house whispers tales of river commerce. Richard C. Dement, a local businessman who made his living on the Illinois River, commissioned this house. He only lived…
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Farm Creek Section
· 4.8 mi · Scraped Hmdb
This hillside is one of the first places geologists studied layers of earth, revealing secrets of the planet's past. The Farm Creek Section near East Peoria showed Ice Age geological formations, which were already well…
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Adlai E. Stevenson I House
· 6.4 mi · Scraped Hmdb
Imagine a future Vice President pacing these very streets! This is the Adlai E. Stevenson I House, where the future politician and his wife, Letitia Green, lived in the late 1860s. Stevenson was a circuit lawyer,…
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Metamora Courthouse State Historic Site
· 6.5 mi · Scraped Hmdb
Imagine a future president, not in the White House, but right here, arguing cases! This is the Metamora Courthouse, where Abraham Lincoln practiced law in his early career. Built in 1845, this courthouse served as the…
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Eureka College
· 7.3 mi · Scraped Hmdb
Passing by Eureka College, you're near the alma mater of a future President of the United States: Ronald Reagan. Reagan graduated from Eureka College in 1932, majoring in economics and sociology. He was also a star…
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Academy of Our Lady/Spalding Institute
· 9.5 mi · Scraped Hmdb
Imagine two worlds, separated only by a city street. That was life for students at the Academy of Our Lady and Spalding Institute in downtown Peoria. The Academy of Our Lady, a girls' school, had roots stretching back…
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Peoria, IL
· 9.6 mi · Local history
Peoria, Illinois, owes much of its identity to the heavy rumble of engines and the glint of yellow paint. Here, Caterpillar Inc. took root and grew into a global powerhouse, shaping not only the city's economy but also…
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Peoria station (Rock Island Line)
· 9.7 mi · Scraped Hmdb
All aboard for a glimpse into the golden age of rail travel at this beautifully preserved turn-of-the-century depot! This is the old Rock Island Depot. In 1899, the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad built this…
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Peoria Union Station
· 9.9 mi · Scraped Hmdb
Once a bustling passenger rail hub, this Second Empire-style station connected north-central Illinois. Peoria Union Station was built on Depot Street near the Illinois River. At its peak, it had seven tracks operating.…
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Allentown Union Hall
· 10.2 mi · Scraped Hmdb
This unassuming building in Allentown is a survivor; it hosted community events in a town that nearly vanished from the map. In 1892, the Allentown Union Hall was built. Back then, getting around wasn't easy, so locals…
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Creve Coeur - La Salle's Fort Crèvecœur
· 10.6 mi · Historical Event
In January 1680, La Salle built Fort Crèvecœur on the east bank of Lake Peoria — a small wooden fort intended as a base from which to descend the Mississippi River. The name, French for 'heartbreak,' captured his mood…
