The Lincoln Heritage Trail is a designation for a series of highways in the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

s of Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

, Indiana

Indiana

Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...

 and Kentucky

Kentucky

The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...

 that links communities with pre-presidential period historical ties to U.S. president Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...

.

History

Fifty years after Lincoln's death (1915), the Illinois General Assembly

Illinois General Assembly

The Illinois General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois and comprises the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Senate. The General Assembly was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Illinois has 59 legislative districts, with two...

 authorized the Illinois State Historical Library

Illinois Historic Preservation Agency

The Illinois Historic Preservation Agency is a governmental agency of the U.S. state of Illinois. It is tasked with the duty of maintaining most State-owned historic sites within Illinois, and maximizing their educational and recreational value to visitors....

 to mark the exact route traveled by Lincoln from Kentucky through Indiana to Illinois. Almost another 50 years passed before the 1000 miles (1,609.3 km) trail was opened in 1963. Author Andrew Ferguson cites Robert Newman

Robert Newman

Robert Newman is a British stand-up comedian, author and political activist. In 1993 Newman and his then comedy partner David Baddiel became the first comedians to play and sell out the 12,000-seat Wembley Arena in London...

, Illinois' director of tourism in the 1960s, as saying "the whole thing was cooked up by the marketing guys at the American Petroleum Institute

American Petroleum Institute

The American Petroleum Institute, commonly referred to as API, is the largest U.S trade association for the oil and natural gas industry...

. ... They wanted to get people traveling. Get 'em into their cars, get 'em buying gasoline." The Trail originally had 3,000 markers showing Lincoln's route to Illinois.

Route description

As of today, much of the Trail is in disrepair and signs are missing or nearly obscured. Yet, some still exist. One sign still stands on US 68 in Perryville, Kentucky. You can see it if you are approaching Perryville on US 68 traveling west, as it is at the intersection of US 68, US 150, and KY 52. Another Lincoln Heritage Trail sign is located on US 60 in Frankfort, and you can see it if you're traveling east just past the interchange with US 421 and KY 676. Another sign is on Alternate US 60 near the Grindstead Drive / I-64 interchange in Louisville. These signs are well over 20 years old. They have not been replaced as Kentucky has moved from the old painted signs to Type III reflective signs. Some counties along the Trail have made efforts to restore signs and markers, but overall the Trail is somewhat difficult to follow under modern conditions.

In Illinois, the Trail includes Illinois Route 155

Illinois Route 155

Illinois Route 155 is an east–west state highway in southwestern Illinois. It runs from Fort de Chartres - outside of Prairie du Rocher - to Illinois Route 3 in Ruma. This is a distance of approximately .- Route description :...

, part of Illinois Route 1

Illinois Route 1

Illinois Route 1 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Illinois. Running parallel to the Indiana border, it is also the longest state road, starting on the south side of Chicago as Halsted Street at the intersection with 95th Street, south to a free ferry crossing to Kentucky at Cave-In-Rock on...

, Illinois Route 33

Illinois Route 33

Illinois Route 33 is a multidirectional highway in southeastern Illinois, with its western terminus at Illinois Route 128 on the Fayette–Effingham county line near Beecher City and its southern terminus at U.S. Highway 50 east of Lawrenceville. It also overlaps Illinois Route 32 from Shumway to...

 and Illinois Route 97

Illinois Route 97

Illinois Route 97 is a north–south state highway in the central and western portions of the U.S. state of Illinois. It extends from exit 98 on Interstate 55 in Springfield northwest to U.S. Highway 150 near Galesburg. It crosses over the Illinois River on a bridge west of...

 (New Salem, Il area) and Illinois Route 125

Illinois Route 125

Illinois Route 125 is a major highway in the central portion of the U.S. state of Illinois. Illinois 125 runs east from the concurrent U.S...

 (Old Beardstown Post Road).

In Indiana, it includes Indiana State Road 62

Indiana State Road 62

State Road 62 in the U.S. State of Indiana is an east–west route that runs from the Illinois state line in the southwest corner of Indiana to the Louisville, Kentucky area, then northeast toward the Cincinnati, Ohio area.-Route description:...

 and Indiana State Road 441

Indiana State Road 441

State Road 441 is a short spur of U.S. Route 41 that passes through downtown Vincennes.-Route description:State Road 441 begins just south of Vincennes at U.S. Route 41. It passes north through Vincennes where it is concurrent with Willow Street, then Sixth Street, then Vigo Street...

.