The Great Western Railroad depot in Springfield, Illinois, was named to the National Register of Historic Places effective Aug. 25, according to an email a few days ago from the National Park Service.
The depot at 930 E. Monroe St. (map here) sits barely a block east of the classic Ninth Street alignment of Route 66. The brick depot was built in 1852, which makes it more than historic enough for inclusion to the National Register.
But the Great Western depot has this additional cachet:
Three months after his election in November 1860, Abraham Lincoln left Springfield for Washington, D.C. to become the 16th President of the United States. The special train that would take him there left the Great Western Depot on the rainy morning of Monday, February 11, 1861, the last day Lincoln spent in Springfield. […]
Lincoln gave a short speech to the group of friends and family who came to see him off. His words, brief yet powerful, moved his audience and foretold of the great challenge he faced.
“My friends, No one, not in my situation, can appreciate my feeling of sadness at this parting. To this place, and the kindness of these people, I owe everything. Here I have lived a quarter of a century, and have passed from a young to an old man. Here my children have been born, and one is buried. I now leave, not knowing when, or whether ever, I may return, with a task before me greater than that which rested upon Washington. Without the assistance of that Divine Being, who ever attended him, I cannot succeed. With that assistance I cannot fail. Trusting in Him, who can go with me, and remain with you and be everywhere for good, let us confidently hope that all will yet be well. To His care commending you, as I hope in your prayers you will commend me, I bid you an affectionate farewell.”
It also was from this depot where Lincoln gazed at his beloved Springfield for the last time before his assassination in 1865.
For the last 50 years or so, the depot has operated as a museum. It was purchased two years ago by the Noll Law Office, extensively renovated , and reopened on the first floor as a self-guided museum (more about its hours are here). The second floor holds the law office.
The depot is another reminder you could spend all day visiting the historic Lincoln sites around Springfield.
(Image of the Great Western Railroad Depot by Larry Myhre via Flickr)