The Lincoln Trail Homestead State Park and Memorial is a 162 acre (0.65 km²) state park located on the Sangamon River in Macon County near Harristown, Illinois. This important historic site, only 12 miles Southwest of Decatur, offers hiking, canoeing, picnicking, recreational activities, and a glimpse into the past.  The park offers a unique view of central Illinois.

 
The state memorial, created in 1938, commemorates the approximate location of Abraham’s Lincoln’s first home in Illinois. The original Lincoln cabin has long been lost but the memorials and the quiet forest and stream easily transport the visitor back to the time when the Lincoln's first settled this virgin wilderness.  When you visit the park, drive east to the end of the park road where you will the find the memorials.
 
The park is about 10 miles straight west of Decatur, Illinois. Take Route 36 to Lincoln Trail Memorial Parkway; go south four miles. The park is on the east side of the road

Lincoln Trail Homestead

Spitler Woods State Natural Area, a 200-acre site in Mt. Zion in Macon County, is home to one of the largest acreages of old growth woods in central Illinois.  Much of the site is dedicated as Spitler Woods Nature Preserve, providing additional protection for the site's valuable natural features. 

Spitler Woods mesic upland forest includes red oak, sugar maple, black walnut and basswood on the hillsides and slopes. Dry mesic forest containing white oak, red oak and shagbark hickory is present on the higher elevations. Wet-mesic floodplain forest containing sycamore, hackberry and Ohio buckeye is present along the creek which flows through the nature preserve. The site has a spectacular display of spring wildflowers, including false rue anemone, wild geranium, trillium, spring beauty and mayapple.

Spitler Woods provides outstanding habitat for songbirds, with birders spotting yellow-billed cuckoo, gray catbird, eastern wood pewee and red-bellied woodpecker.

Picnic area shelters at Spitler Woods can be reserved online at Reserve America.​​​​​​

State Parks Tagged With: Mt Zion