WESTERN TOP SPOTS
Welcome to river country, where you can follow the waters to historic sites and spectacular state parks.
Click on any of the highlighted destinations to find the Top Spots in Western Illinois.
JOHN DEERE PAVILION
 The John Deere Pavilion celebrates farm life and the man who changed it forever when he invented the first self-scouring plow in 1848. The Pavilion includes interactive agricultural exhibits and displays of mammoth John Deere equipment. Pick up a souvenir at The John Deere Store, where you'll find everything from t-shirts to collectibles. Then hop over to the nearby Collectors Center, where true Deere fans will revel in the vintage tractors on display. Visitors can also watch antique machines being lovingly restored.
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NAUVOO TEMPLE
 The stunning Nauvoo Temple is a recreation of the original Mormon temple that was destroyed in the mid-1800s. Mormon contractors built the limestone replica to exact detail on the site of the original temple, often using construction methods from the 1840s. Nauvoo Temple is not open to the public.
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WILDLIFE PRAIRIE STATE PARK
 Wander this 2,000-acre zoological park and see native animals that include cougars, bison, wolves and black bears in their natural habitat. Learn about the frontier days at the Pioneer Farmstead, which features a one-room school house and log cabin. Spend the night at the park in a renovated train caboose or a lakeside cottage.
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BISHOP HILL STATE HISTORIC SITE
 Located in Henry County, Bishop Hill is a historic country village that honors its Swedish heritage. Home to descendants of the original founders, Bishop Hill offers museums, restored colony buildings, craft and antiques shops, and restaurants that serve up authentic Swedish cuisine.
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SPOON RIVER VALLEY SCENIC DRIVE
 The Spoon River Valley became nationally known from the work of Edgar Lee Masters, author of the noted "Spoon River Anthology." The highways and byways of Fulton County provide more than 100 hundred miles of scenic routes along the Spoon River Valley Scenic Drive. Beautiful any time of year, it's especially spectacular during fall color season.
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GREAT RIVER ROAD
 Tracing Illinois' entire western border, this 550-mile route follows along the mighty Mississippi River, traversing charming river towns, sacred sites and breathtaking limestone bluffs.
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CARL SANDBURG HISTORIC SITE
 A Pulitzer Prize-winning writer, poet, Lincoln biographer, folk singer and one-time hobo, Carl Sandburg left an indelible mark on Illinois and America. View Sandburg's birthplace, tour the Visitors' Center and pay your respects in the perennial garden where the author's ashes are buried beneath Remembrance Rock.
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PEORIA RIVERFRONT
 In Peoria you'll find all the action at the RiverFront, a complex of shops, restaurants, art galleries and entertainment venues situated on the banks of the Illinois River. From the Riverfront Arts Center to the inPlay high-tech interactive game emporium to the Illinois Antique Center, you'll find something to please everyone. Don't miss a ride on the Spirit of Peoria, an old-fashioned paddlewheel boat.
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BLACK HAWK STATE HISTORIC SITE
 The Black Hawk State Historic Site in Rock Island pays homage to the Sauk and Mesquakie (Fox) Indian tribes that occupied it as far back as 12,000 years ago. The site is a tree-lined park with walking paths along the scenic Rock River and picnic facilities with beautiful views. It is also the home of the John Hauberg Indian Museum, located in a 1930s lodge, which exhibits important collections of Sauk and Fox Indian artifacts. Many of the pieces came directly from the family of Black Hawk, the famed Sauk warrior.
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DICKSON MOUNDS MUSEUM
 Dickson Mounds Museum is one of the major on-site archaeological museums in the United States. Innovative interpretive exhibits, displays of art and artifacts, and archaeological sites that include the remains of three early Mississippian buildings give a glimpse into the world of the American Indian in the Illinois River Valley.
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