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Attractions
The Beardstown River Museum is the ideal place to learn about Beardstown and the Illinois River history. Located in a restored opera house, the museum features items related to the Illinois River such as antique equipment used by those who earned a living on the river. Located on 121 State Street, the museum is also home to the Beardstown Chamber of Commerce and the Visitors Center. Call (217) 323-3261 for more information.
Built in 1844 by Thomas Beard, founder of Beardstown, Lincoln Courthouse & Museum is the only courthouse still in use where Abraham Lincoln once practiced law. The courthouse served as the Cass County Courthouse for nearly 30 years before Virginia became the county seat. During those 30 years, the most famous case to be tried there is undoubtedly the Almanac Trial where Lincoln successfully defended William Armstrong against murder charges. The courthouse is also home to the Black Museum that includes a collection of guns representing nearly every period in American history, a display of arrowheads and Native American artifacts, and a set of dishes that belonged to Nancy Beard, Thomas Beard’s wife.