Galena, Illinois

September 28, 2024

The original idea was a stay at White Pines Forest State Park, with its buildings and cabins built by the Civilian Conservation Corps. As White Pines is almost halfway across Illinois, J talked me into Galena in the far northwest corner, Mississippi Palisades State Park, and Sabula, Iowa’s only island. It wasn’t hard to talk me into the additions.

The first break was at Hampshire, Illinois, which I recognized from a previous trip years ago. Our objective was a coffee shop that hadn’t been there before, Hampshire Social. Great place for a coffee/baked goods/stretch the legs break. Also, down the street we found a vintage gas station set up as an event backdrop. Interesting idea.

To get to Galena, we ended up on Route 20. Later I found out this is the same Route 20 I grew up on (Southwestern Blvd. in Hamburg, New York). It’s the longest road in the U.S., running between Boston, Massachusetts, and Newport, Oregon. I had no idea the road I could see for maybe a quarter or half mile in either direction stretched so far. I think of the scene in the Orson Welles version of Jane Eyre, in which Jane and Helen imagine the road that passes Lowood taking them all the way to London.

At some point we realized the road was getting hilly and curvy, passing farms and bisecting smallish towns. I’d forgotten that section of Illinois is part of the Driftless Area, untouched by the glaciers that deposited tons of drift elsewhere and buried the terrain. The scenery reminded me of parts of western New York. The weather was perfect, and I was a happy camper.

In an especially hilly area, I saw a sign warning truck drivers of crosswinds. Not far past that, I saw a sign for a scenic overlook coming up. We had to stop.

I found out later the highest natural point in Illinois, Charles Mound at an elevation of 1,235 feet, is in this general area. It’s about half the height of Brush Mountain overlooking Logan Valley, where my parents grew up in Pennsylvania. Charles Mound is on private property, requires a walk, and can be visited only on certain dates, so scenic overlook was good enough — just look at that wind.

I didn’t know much about Galena, but it’s very hilly, the Galena River runs through it, and it thrives on tourism.

We stopped at Ulysses S. Grant’s house. We didn’t go on the tour, but I was impressed by the steep hillside in the back. There’s a statue of his wife, Julia Dent Grant, which is so unflattering it’s been nicknamed “Mrs. Butterworth.” Further along there’s a bust of Ely Samuel Parker. I didn’t know who he was or why he was by Grant’s house, so looked him up. Wikipedia:

Ely Samuel Parker (1828 – August 31, 1895), born Hasanoanda (Tonawanda Seneca), later known as Donehogawa, was an engineer, U.S. Army officer, aide to General Ulysses Grant, and Commissioner of Indian Affairs, in charge of the government’s relations with Native Americans.

Packed with tourists, downtown Galena looks like it hasn’t changed much since Grant’s time — except for the population decline and cars parked everywhere. We gave up on finding a place to park.

After a mid-afternoon lunch, we went to — where else? — Grant Park to see the statue of Ulysses S. Grant. Not surprisingly, it’s up a hill. Much of Galena is up or down. The statue is impressive. They think a lot of Grant in Galena.

Unfortunately, it was time to go if we were to get to the other two stops and the final destination. On the road, a large bird flew just overhead. J assumed it was a turkey vulture, but I caught sight of a white head — a bald eagle!

On to Mississippi Palisades State Park and Sabula.