Mid America Destinations

Illinois River Towns Quad Cities North Shore and South Dakota

Illinois and Iowa

Champaign County is nearly equidistant from Chicago, St Louis and Indianapolis; a thriving micro-urban oasis supported by local agriculture, technology and research and home to the University of Illinois.

The College of Agriculture, Consumer and Environmental Science is a leader in crop science, bio-energy and animal science. Farmer-owned Grain Cooperatives in America’s heartland and the Illinois grain belt; rich soils and modern farm practices produce record yields of quality grains. Ethanol and distiller’s grain production. Research in soybeans, from production to consumption, by the National Soybeans Research Laboratory. The National Center for Super Computing Applications, whose Blue Waters Supercomputer is the largest and most powerful on a university campus and among the largest in the world.

The River Towns of Illinois along the banks and bluffs of the Mississippi River hug the western border of Illinois for 550 miles. Experience an Illinois winery, brewery, farm, u-pick, or local farm to table restaurant. Four Centuries of history and heritage and thousands of stories that recount America's evolution while experiencing breathtaking views, majestic landscapes and species that travel thousands of miles for a visit or to make themselves a home.

The Quad Cities area consists of Davenport and Bettendorf in Iowa, and Moline, East Moline and Rock Island in Illinois. The region has the excitement of a big city and the hospitality of a small town with award-winning museums and cultural centers, internationally-recognized festivals, beautiful riverfronts and a vibrant nightlife.
Davenport has beautiful riverfront vistas and an active downtown area with the Figge Art and Putnam History Museums and great shopping at the North Park Mall.
 

Bettendorf the Library and adjacent Family Museum provide exciting programs and storytelling. The numerous outdoor activities include the Splash Landing water park, Wallace's Garden Center and Duck Creek Recreational Trail.

Rock Island downtown is known for its festivals and nightlife with Cajun food and zydeco music; Jamaican food and reggae music; and a fall Irish folk festival. Family activities include the country's largest go-kart street race. 

Experience a Downtown Architectural Tour and the Broadway Historic District

 

Moline is one of the agricultural capitals of the world, home of John Deere and steeped in history. The modern downtown area features great riverfront views and evening entertainment with musicals performed by local actors.
East Moline is home to many great events and festivities. Empire Park is right on the Mississippi River, walk along the riverfront trails of The Quarter or visit to the John Deere Harvester Works, one of the world's largest combine factories.

The North Shore Communities along Lake Michigan are minutes from Chicago’s city center: Evanston, Glenview, Northbrook, Prospect Heights, Skokie, Wheeling and Winnekta.

South Dakota

Aberdeen South Dakota Before the arrival of European settlers, the area was inhabited by the Sioux Indians. The first group of Euro-American settlers to reach the area in the 1820s was a party of four people, three horses, two mules, fifteen cattle, and two wagons. This group of settlers was later joined by another group the following spring, and eventually more settlers migrated toward this general area. Like many towns of the Midwest, Aberdeen was built around the newly developing railroads. Officially plotted as a town site on January 3, 1881 by the Milwaukee Road which was presided over by Alexander Mitchell, who was born in Scotland, hence the name Aberdeen. The town was officially founded on July 6, 1881, the date of the first arrival of a Milwaukee Railroad train.

Aberdeen the perfect family and business destination

The Dacotah Prairie Museum The idea for a community museum in Aberdeen dates back almost 70 years. In 1938, John Murphy, a Northern State College professor, and Marc Cleworth, a salesman, created the Northern South Dakota History Museum which was housed in the Central building on Northern's campus. The collection of this first museum grew rapidly through loans and donations until by 1941, it had amassed a collection of over 500 items.

Rapid City is centrally located to visit the Black Hills, Mount Rushmore, the Crazy Horse Memorial, Custer State Park and the Badlands. Western and Native American Heritage throughout the city you will find Native American history exhibits, fine arts display, and interactive museums like the Journey Museum that takes you from the formation of the Black Hills over 2.5 billion years-ago to the continuing saga of the Western frontier.

The Historic Neighborhoods of St Louis Missouri

St. Louis is home to blues music, a brewing tradition and Cardinals baseball. The city was destined to become a beer town. In addition to the large German and Irish population, there was plenty of water, rail connections, limestone caves, and an entrepreneurial spirit that provided the foundation for the city’s beer business. Today, the tradition continues as St. Louis is home to several microbreweries and brewpubs.

Ballpark Village is a seven block, 10-acre entertainment plaza comprising Cardinals Nation, a venue that combines a Cards-themed restaurant, rooftop deck with views inside the stadium, and the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame and Museum; a Budweiser brew house, complete with beer garden and displays of St. Louis’ brewing history.

St. Louis Cardinals catch an exciting Major League Baseball action and cheer for the St. Louis Cardinals, 11-time World Series Champions.  You can also take a Stadium Tour.

4 Hands Brewing Company is a craft brewery located in the LaSalle Park neighborhood.  Specializing in crafting unique ales that push the level of creativity and flavor.  At any one time, 10 different ales will be available.

Schlafly Bottleworks free tours of St. Louis’ favorite brewery includes an exhibit on the history of brewing in St. Louis, the brew house, bottling plant and tasting rooms. 

A Town for Music Lovers

 

The National Blues Museum is a world-class cultural attraction. Legendary Blues icon Buddy Guy, Grammy Award Winners Robert Cray and Derek Trucks, and film and TV star John Goodman support the project. It explores the Blues and celebrates the genre as the foundation of all modern American music. The facility educates guests in an entertaining environment that includes high impact technology driven experiences, a 100-seat theater, artifact-driven exhibits and public programming.

BB’s Jazz, Blues & Soups stop in and catch award winning live music nightly with local and national acts. Broadway Oyster Bar is where you can catch the best in local and national bands.

Route 66 has become an icon of American culture and history. Established in 1926, this semi-transcontinental highway stretches 2448 miles from Chicago to Los Angeles. Route 66 entered American folklore with the famous song written by Bobby Troup who urged us all to ‘get our kicks on Route 66’.

In St. Louis You Will Experience American and European Traditions

Downtown St. Louis has undergone a myriad of changes and modifications since its days as a garment and shoe manufacturing center. The Loft District is home to major corporations, small businesses, residential lofts, boutiques, galleries, restaurants and nightspots. The neighborhood’s evolution has returned the once proud historic buildings to service.

The Gateway Arch soars 630 feet above downtown St. Louis. America’s tallest man-made monument offers a 30-mile panoramic view of the Mississippi River and the city; it was built to honor President Thomas Jefferson and his vision of a continental United States. 

The Central West End is over a century old and full of charming sidewalk cafés, galleries, antique shops, restaurants, boutiques and pubs. Adjacent to the commercial district, it is characterized by tree-lined streets, stately turn-of-the-century homes and the family apartment of playwright Tennessee Williams, setting of his play The Glass Menagerie.

Cherokee Antiques Row minutes south of downtown St. Louis, it offers six blocks of independently owned and operated antique, collectible and specialty shops, art galleries, restaurants and cafés. The Cherokee-Lemp History Walk takes you through 200 years of history, with mini-histories displayed in the windows, on fences or facades of 26 buildings that detail charming Victorian architecture and the families that ran the businesses from the 19^th century through the 1950s.

Lemp Mansion Home of Beer Barons and the Most Haunted House in America

Clayton is home to the St. Louis County government as well as boutiques, galleries, hotels and restaurants known throughout the region.

Webster Groves is an enclave filled with century-old homes and a mélange of architectural styles with cultural offerings, cozy restaurants, and boutiques. Over 300 of the community’s homes are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The neighborhood includes the 1857 Hawken House, built by inventors of the rifle that explorers took to the western frontier, Webster University and the Loretto-Hilton Theatre.

Soulard is the city’s oldest neighborhood. Its historic streets, lined with red brick townhomes, are located five minutes south of the Arch. It is named for Antoine Soulard, a Frenchman who surveyed colonial St. Louis and is home to historic churches, built by St. Louis’ immigrant communities. Soulard marks its French heritage with an annual Mardi Gras fête; revelers also flock to the neighborhood in the fall for Oktoberfest. The Farmers Market has been operating since 1779.

Laclede’s Landing is where 19^th century architecture meets 21^st century dining and entertainment. The Landing is a collection of historic riverfront warehouses that have been converted into nightclubs and restaurants.

Grand Center is the cultural hub of the region. There are few districts in the United States that have the intensity and caliber of arts offerings as Grand Center with its 12,000 theatre seats, 1,500 cultural events, and a dozen galleries and museums.