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Illinois - Cultural Destinations

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Filled with memorabilia Sheas Gas Station Museum is a popular stop on Route 66 in Springfield Illinois.
Filled with memorabilia, Shea's Gas Station Museum is a popular stop on Route 66 in Springfield, Illinois. (Courtesy of the Illinois Bureau of Tourism)

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Designed by Frank Gehry, the Bicentennial Plaza Bridge in Chicago is 925 feet long and the only bridge in the world designed by the famed architect.

Illinois

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Designed by Frank Gehry, the Bicentennial Plaza Bridge in Chicago is 925 feet long and the only bridge in the world designed by the famed architect.

View our photo gallery of Illinois

Related Links

  • Official Tourism Web Site

More from Smithsonian.com

  • Illinois - Landmarks and Points of Interest
  • Illinois - Nature and Scientific Wonders
  • Illinois - Music and Performing Arts
  • Illinois

The Art Institute of Chicago holds an important collection of American art, including works by Mary Cassat, Georgia O’Keefe, Grant Wood and Edward Hopper. Though the painting is an iconic portrayal of New York, Hopper’s famous Nighthawks (1942) resides here.

Eastern Illinois is home to a large community of Amish. Horse-drawn buggies pass through the town of Arthur, and shops are full of Amish crafts. At Arthur’s annual quilt show, in April, Amish seamstresses exhibit and sell their best work.

Though not as well-known as California’s Napa Valley, Illinois has a wine country of its own, with more than 70 vintners throughout the state, many of which offer tastings and tours.


The Art Institute of Chicago holds an important collection of American art, including works by Mary Cassat, Georgia O’Keefe, Grant Wood and Edward Hopper. Though the painting is an iconic portrayal of New York, Hopper’s famous Nighthawks (1942) resides here.

Eastern Illinois is home to a large community of Amish. Horse-drawn buggies pass through the town of Arthur, and shops are full of Amish crafts. At Arthur’s annual quilt show, in April, Amish seamstresses exhibit and sell their best work.

Though not as well-known as California’s Napa Valley, Illinois has a wine country of its own, with more than 70 vintners throughout the state, many of which offer tastings and tours.

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