By CINDY LADAGE
Illinois Correspondent

LEWISTOWN, Ill. — The Spoon River weaves through the towns of Fulton County and the surrounding area, and a driving tour always takes place the first two full weekends of October. Along with vendors and fall scenery are the historic and cultural sites.
European settler Ossian Ross arrived in what is now Lewistown in 1821. He claimed a patch of land as compensation under the Military Tract of Illinois Act for serving in the War of 1812. Long before Ross arrived, however, Native Americans lived in this area for centuries.

Visitors can learn about the early settlements at nearby Dickson Mounds, the Native American settlement/burial mound. This site, which overlooks the Illinois River, was named after the chiropractor Don Dickson, who rediscovered the area in 1927.

The town of London Mills is where the Spoon River makes its entrance into the county. Vendors set up in Riverside Park, highlighted by the replica of the Statue of Liberty, built by the Boy Scouts during the 1930s.

Nearby Farmington first went by the name of the Merchant Settlement and was once home to a fort, built in 1831. The area was also well known because of Luther Birge, whose home was a station on the Underground Railroad. The town of Cuba, another Spoon River stop, was also a site of Underground Railroad activity.
Speaking of railroad, Avon had the first rail service, the Northern Cross Railroad, built through in 1856. Its history is maintained at Avon’s Railroad Museum.

The town of Ellisville was named after Levi Ellis, who erected the first mill on the river in 1829 at a spot where natives forded the Spoon River. Visitors today enjoy stopping by the old post office and Ellisville Opera House. Ellisville is also home to the state’s smallest operating library.

Not far from the crossing is Mount Pisgah Park, the site of an early Native American village. According to the Spoon River website, “The view of the beautiful Spoon River Valley from Mount Pisgah is unsurpassed anywhere along Spoon River’s winding course.” This history is relived each year with a tipi erected during Fall Festival time.

The town of Fairview boasts the oldest Dutch Reform Church west of the Allegheny Mountains; built in 1838, the church is operational. Fairview also boasts an octagon-shaped Village Hall.

One of the larger stops along the drive is Canton, once home of the International Harvester plant, which was originally the Orendorff Plow Works. Another of the bigger stops in Smithfield boasts the Harold Kee Welch Art Studio and Museum. Welch, who was a Smithfield native, is famous for his murals in banks and post offices throughout the Midwest.

At his studio, his works, including clay sculptures of Edgar Lee Masters – author of the Spoon River Anthology – are on display.
The Red Brick School is now a community center filled with displays, including that of one of the founders of the Spoon River Drive, Bill Swango. He has his studio in the school and is widely recognized as an expert in wildlife carving.

The town of Bernadotte, named after the French marshal who became king of Sweden, was settled in 1826 and was a site for grist- and sawmilling. Two noted landmarks include the only dam on Spoon River, and the iron bridge that was constructed in 1915.
Bernadotte is famous because the town was taken in as part of the World War II Camp Ellis Reservation. Residents of the area still recall the farms that were once there and know firsthand how the camp construction permanently altered the surrounding terrain, which once had seven hills and now is relatively flat.

Lewistown was home to Masters and served as inspiration for his Anthology. The area also has a long railroad history. Many visitors flock to the Rasmussen Blacksmith Shop Museum and come to hear readings of the Anthology.

The town of Ipava was famous for its wool mills and today is known for the stained glass windows of the Ipava Presbyterian Church. Like Ipava, Duncan Mills was also home to mills – George Duncan built the original mill in the 1830s.

Many have heard of wealthy businessman John Jacob Astor, for whom the Village of Astoria was named. Astor started out as a fur trader and land speculator and was the original owner of the tract upon which Astoria was platted in 1836.

These are but a few of the points of interest to which visitors could trek during their Spoon River journey. For more information in planning your own tour, log onto www.spoonriverdrive.org or write to the Spoon River Valley Scenic Drive at P.O. Box 525, Canton, IL 61520. You may also telephone 309-647-8980 or e-mail info@spoonriverdrive.org