Illinois Historic Preservation Agency

Featured Articles

'Experience History' Mobile App

Our new app offers information and photos that will help visitors get the most from their trips to state historic sites.

Experience History

The state operates dozens of historic sites, museums and monuments where visitors can learn the stories of Illinois. Experience life in a frontier fort. Walk the halls where Abraham Lincoln rose to greatness. See the remnants of a Native American city.

Research History

From students to family historians to professional researchers, everyone can learn something from the vast records and helpful online tools provided by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Look up an Illinois ancestor who served in the Civil War. Explore a timeline of Illinois history. Visit the Lincoln Presidential Library and examine rare documents.

Preserve History

Our preservation services division helps determine which Illinois buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Our staff reviews construction projects that might affect cultural resources and administer a tax incentive program for rehabilitation of historic buildings. Staff also can help communities turn their historic buildings into an economic asset.

Fort at Lewis and Clark Site

The Lewis & Clark site commemorates Camp Dubois, the 1803-1804 winter camp of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. It was at the camp on Wood River that members of the Corps of Discovery prepared their expedition to the Pacific Ocean.

Announcements

NOTICE: All historic sites, except those in Regions 4 and 7 of the Restore Illinois plan, to open January 26, 2021

Select state historic sites will reopen to the public effective Tuesday, Jan. 26. All sites open to the public will return to staffing levels prior to their closure. Sites in regions 4 and 7 of the Restore Illinois plan, including Fort de Chartres, Fort Kaskaskia, Cahokia Mounds and Lewis & Clark, will remained closed until further notice.

Historic sites will continue to follow Illinois Department of Public Health guidelines regarding tier mitigations released by the Office of the Governor Jan. 15:

Guided interpretive tour groups will be limited to 10 people or less, will be socially distanced and will follow Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines;
Total site capacity will be limited to 50 people or no more than 25 percent occupancy in public facing areas, will be socially distanced and follow CDC guidelines; and
Concession operations will be open and following all respective tier restrictions.

Guests who plan to visit any historic site open to the public should call the site prior to arriving as some sites will operate with reservations only.