ROADTRIP of the day:

Today we’re taking a short day trip to Lincoln, Illinois located on historic Route 66 in the seat of Logan County. Originally settled in 1830, it is the only town named for the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln before he became president – he practiced law there from 1847-1859 and christened the town in 1853 as one of its founders. American author Langston Hughes spent some of his early years here at the beginning of the 20th century. Later in his life he wrote to his eighth-grade teacher in Lincoln, telling her his writing career began there in the eighth grade, when he was elected class poet. Lincoln’s stone, three-story domed courthouse (built in 1905) is one of Illinois’ most architecturally spectacular, and its liberal arts college (the only named for Mr. Lincoln during his lifetime) houses a museum containing an excellent collection of Abraham Lincoln related documents and artifacts. Perhaps more notable, however, is Lincoln’s biggest attraction: The Railsplitter Covered Wagon. Built by Mr. David Bentley as he recovered from heart disease, the wagon weighs five tons and measures 40 feet long, 12 feet wide, and 24 feet tall. Abe Lincoln, seated in the front reading a book, weighs 350 pounds and measures 12 feet tall. It was recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the World's Largest Covered Wagon and named the #1 Roadside Attraction in America for 2010 by Reader's Digest magazine.