2013 Springfield Walks Tour Line-Up
All tours start at 6th and Adams St in front of the Lincon-Herndon Law Office historic site, tickets can be purchased on arrival for your tour.
Lincoln's Ghost Walk: Legends & Lore - This 10-block 90-minute walking tour uses the Lincoln sites as the backdrop for the ghostly and strange stories surrounding Lincoln's life and death. Lincoln had bizarre visions and dreams, Mary had séances in the White House and no other Presidential family endured so much so this nation might survive. This tour is loaded with factual history and the ghostly lore of Lincoln. Tour is suitable for all ages, bizarre history, not scary.
Dates: Tuesday to Saturday, March 5th to May 31at 7:30pm
June 1 to August 31, nightly at 7:30pm
Sept 1 to Nov 16, Tuesday to Saturday at 7:30pm
Cost: $14 adults, $8 kids 11-17, under 10 free up to 2 kids
Minimum of 4 adults to operate, no maximum,
this tour can accommodate large groups
Tour begins at #1 Old State Capitol Plaza in front
of the Lincoln family statues, 6th and Adams St.
This tour has received numerous accolades in domestic and international press and winner of the Best Heritage Tourism Promotion Award in Springfield.
If you are visiting Springfield this is a "must do."
Topics include his last visit to his law office, his funeral in the capitol, his Christian beliefs, is his home haunted, the death of his children, Spiritualism, Mary's séances, Lincoln's visions, the Inaugural and funeral trains, strange things at the tomb, his coffin opened five times, the attempted theft of his body, and the final interment of the Lincoln family. There's more, can't give too much away!!
The Haunted Dead Walk - This 10-block 90-minute walking tour walks through Springfield's old town historic district and recounts the haunted history of this old prairie town. There's grisly tales of cannibalism, ghostly old soldiers, disturbed cemeteries, haunted theaters, phantom rioters, and other haunted history still playing out on the streets today. This tour concludes at the old Hickox for a 30-minute light paranormal investigation inside this historic house once a morgue and funeral home. We'll provide the diving rods and you bring a camera and an open mind. This part is a real ghost hunt! No gimmicks or tricks. Tour may not be suitable for kids under 10.
(If this location becomes unavailable a suitable alternative will be provided.)
Dates: June 1 to August 31, Friday & Saturday nights 8pm
October 4 to November 16, Friday & Saturday nights at 7pm
Cost: $16 per person
Minimum of 8 to operate, no maximum at this time
Tour begins at #1 Old State Capitol Plaza in front
of the Lincoln family statues, 6th and Adams St.
The Virgil Hickox house has quite a history. Lincoln and Douglas have both been received in this house. Today the house is considered to be host to credible haunted activity. Literally hundreds of EVP's and ghostly photos have been captured by unsuspecting tour participants.
Bootlegging Pub Grub Crawl
Tour Begins February 16th
Guided by Ron Homan, Connor Homan, or Garret Moffett
This 2 hour pub crawl (crawl part should really come much later) is the perfect way to experience a sample of Springfield's night life. We'll take you and showcase four establishments within the historic "Old Town" district for great drinks and food. At each stop and along the way you'll take in some bootlegging trivia and a little wicked prohibition history of Springfield. Did Springfield have a bootlegging crime boss and have mobster style assassinations? Yes we did! Come along we'll tell you about it, have some drinks, learn some cool history, meet new people and make some new friends.
Celtic Mist, Brickhouse, Norb Andy's, and Obed & Isaac's
Dates:September to May, Saturday nights 8pm; June to August, Thursday and Saturday nights 8pm
Cost:$12 per person, cash only. Must be 21to buy your own drinks, tour may not be suitable for kids
Minimum of 4 to operate, maximum 25
Call 217-502-8687 to make your reservation
Tour begins at the Lincoln family statues at 6th And Adams St.
"Take the tour if you know what's good for you, or else!!"
This tour can be arranged for private groups
Abraham Lincoln Site Walking Tour - This half day guided tour walks to the Lincoln sites and gives you the history of Lincoln's life in Springfield. Highlights include entry into three main Lincoln sites, the Old State Capitol, Lincoln's Law Office, and Lincoln's Home. Inside you'll receive historical interpretation by a knowledgeable guide and between sites you'll receive additional stories as you walk in the footsteps of Lincoln. There's Lincoln history on nearly every corner downtown. Learn about Lincoln coming to Springfield, his life in Springfield, his law practice and rise into politics, election night, and of course his family life at home on 8th street. If you want to make the most of your visit to Lincoln's Springfield then this tour is for you. This tour walks along at a comfortable pace with plenty of rest stops.
Operates: Year around weather permitting, unless dangerous weather
Historical sites open hours can change from season to season so the tour will adapt to accommodate any changes.
- 4 adult minimum, maximum 15
- Tour price includes complimentary ticket to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum and useful coupons for downtown shops and restaurants.
- Cost: $30 per adult, $15 under 18, cash only please
Tour time: 9am to 1pm - Meet your guide in front of Lincoln's Law Office at the corner of 6th and Adams St. #1 Old State Capitol Plaza.
To sign up for the tour - Call Springfield Walks 217-502-8687 to find out availability, if no answer please slowly recite return call information, I will return your call. Reservations are required for this tour. You can phone in your reservation up to 9pm the night before.
Sure, you can do the historic Lincoln sites on your own, but with this tour you'll get history and Lincoln stories between the sites that you won't get doing the sites on your own. And Springfield's legendary local guide Garret Moffett is known for his range of local historical knowledge and the more unusual stories of Lincoln. By the end of the day Moffett will leave you with a deeper appreciation of the Lincoln family saga that will impress upon you for a lifetime.
This tour is not available to coach/tour groups due to the SCVB site entry policy. Please see our step-on guide service instead.
Blackout Dates this tour is not available: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Day, President's Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day.
Oak Ridge Cemetery Walk -This 90-minute walking tour reminisces through the unique history of the second most visited cemetery in the United States. Oak Ridge history is much more than Abraham Lincoln, his family and law partners. There are known governors and poets, a controversial bishop and fallen rioters, Grant's daughter Nellie and Civil War generals, and numbers of other notables interred here under the grand Oak trees of Oak Ridge Cemetery.
Details Released Soon
Camp Butler National Cemetery Walk - Camp butler was once the site of the second largest training camp for Civil War soldiers in the Midwest. An estimated 200,000 soldiers were once mustered into military service here before being disseminated out to southern battlefields. Today the training and POW camp is long gone, but it now the final resting place of soldiers from the Civil War, including confederates, to fallen soldiers of current conflicts around the world today. During this 90-minute walking tour your guide will relive the history of the old camp and the soldiers that once passed through these gates.
Details Released Soon
Tour Information
- Tour minimums must be met to operate
- Tours operate rain or shine unless dangerous weather
- Please arrive before tour time, we do not wait on late arrivals
- Parking available anywhere on the streets or garages, except underground
- Call 217-502-8687 for more information
