Route 66 travels directly through Springfield and was part of the original 1926 alignment. You can visit portions of the original road near Carpenter Park, Lake Springfield and a 1.25 mile stretch of historic brick road listed on the National Register of Historic Places near Auburn Illinois. Route 66 stops in Springfield include Cozy Dog Drive In, the Route 66 Drive In Theater, Mahan’s Filling Station, Lauterbach Giant and the newly restored Sonrise Donuts Sign at Route 66 Motorheads & Ace Sign Co. Museum.

A visit back in time to the home of America’s sixteenth President, Abraham Lincoln, awaits you on your journey to Always Legendary Springfield, the Capital City of Illinois. You’ll get a sense of Lincoln as a man and father as well as a leader on his way to greatness. Start your exploration at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum, a one-of-a-kind experience with two special effect theaters, state of the art interactive exhibits and a gallery of treasures that tell Lincoln’s story from his birth in a small cabin in Kentucky through his election, presidency and assassination. From there, you can go out into the city and see the many of the actual historic sites depicted in the museum at the Lincoln Home National Historic Site, Old State Capitol, Lincoln Depot and Lincoln Tomb and Monument where Lincoln, his wife Mary and three of their four children are laid to rest.