Published: October 08, 2008 03:21 pm            

Historical society offers Goshen Trail tour

By PAUL LORENZ

paul.lorenz@mcleansborotimesleader.com

McLEANSBORO — In the early 1800s, the Goshen Trail was the principal route through Southern Illinois for both trade and immigration, Hamilton County Historical Society’s president says.

“People needed to get produce to market, and the easiest way was down the Goshen Trail,” Rick Moore of Broughton, president of the historical society, says.

In 1808, people living at the northwest end of the trail asked the territorial government to make improvements to the road — and to mark the 200th anniversary of that event, Hamilton County Historical Society will offer a free guided bus tour of the Goshen Trail.

The tour is scheduled to take place Oct. 25 and will cover several points on the Goshen Trail in Hamilton County and perhaps part of Jefferson County, “weather and roads permitting,” Moore said.

Settlers from the southeast traveled the Goshen Trail, but eventually the trail’s importance waned with the advent of the steamboat and the development of the railroad and other roads.

Stretching roughly 150 to 200 miles through Southern Illinois, from Shawneetown on the Ohio River to the Edwardsville/Alton area on the Mississippi, the Goshen Trail winds for 15 to 20 miles through Hamilton County, Moore said.

From the south, the road enters Hamilton County southeast of Walpole, then continues a winding route northwest, leaving the county on its western border at the southeast corner of Jefferson County, he said.

Parts of the road are still in use today; other parts run through remote, densely wooded areas, Moore pointed out during a recent preview of the tour.

Stops on the tour, he said, are to include the former Pleasant Grove Methodist Church; the former town of Mellonsville, also known as Knight’s Prairie and Cracker’s Neck; the Knight’s Prairie, Cartwright and Smith churches and cemeteries; and the village of Walpole.

There will be a free lunch at the Smith Church’s picnic shelter around noon, he said.

Sales of its books are part of the reason the historical society decided to underwrite the transportation and lunch costs of the tour, Moore said.

“Folks here have been very supportive of our publications,” he said, “and this is one way to repay them.”



IF YOU GO

What: bus tour of the Goshen Trail in Hamilton County

When: Oct. 25 (The tour meets at 9 a.m. on the west side of the downtown McLeansboro square.)

Cost: free (Reservations will be accepted through Oct. 18. Bus seating is limited, so those interested are advised to reserve a spot early.)

For information or reservations: Rick Moore, 838-2212, or Ron Nelson, 643-3272.

        

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