A Forgotten Town in Southern Illinois & its history

A Forgotten Town in Southern Illinois - We explore forgotten history while walking the empty streets of another living Midwestern ghost town. Looking at what's left of this small Ohio River town, it's easy to dismiss this town's past as being anything but significant. Yet, this town in Southern Illinois once played an important role in early American history. Find out what we learned about this historic town and its important role in Illinois history in this episode of SightseeingSally.

About me: I grew up in a small town the Midwest. Now I drive America's backroads exploring small towns, forgotten places, local history and more!

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[jamesfarmer]

Oh yeah, you missed it at Hogdaddy's. I was an old abandoned hardware store IIRC. It may have later been a bar too, but I'm not positive. At any rate, a guy got a grant, tore out the floor, poured a slab, had a roof put on, and opened up as a biker bar. We would ride down on Saturdays or Sundays, and have a couple. The back was added on, with a kitchen. They had really good food, some of the best burgers, HUGE shrimp, steaks and such. It has a loft that is open in the middle to the main floor. The bar next door was opened later. You are correct that they were biker oriented. For several years they would have a street party/rally, at the same time as the Little Sturgis Rally across the river in Sturgis Kentucky. It was usually a week or so before the big Sturgis rally in South Dakota. Some riders would stop at Little Sturgis on the way to big Sturgis, and, rather than fight the crowds, a lot of local Southern Illinois riders would just camp at Old Town. They had bands, food vendors, rally events, even a mechanical bull in the middle of the floor in Hogdaddys. Imagine the street lined with bikes and a line of bikes parked in the middle of the street, tents and campers in the "park" area. It was a lot of fun. Not sure exactly why it fizzled out over time. The same guy I think still has the Hogrock rally in the spring, and at least use to have Hogrocktoberfest in the fall. It is on his property a few miles away. You're bringing back a lot of good memories with this one

[rexduncan]

During flooding in the early 1990’s, I took a group of students from a community college where I worked to Old Shawneetown to sandbag. We worked alongside a group of prisoners from a nearby state prison. The prisoners worked hard, were good company, and were ready to get on with their lives. Our students learned a lot about the Ohio River, Old Shawneetown, and empathy for others. I still have a warm spot for Old Shawneetown.

[Cubs-Fan.]

I never lived in Shawneetown, but I worked there for a while as well as the surrounding areas, and live nearby. Southern Illinois is a forgotten part of America for several reasons. #1, Chicago. They consume the state in all aspects of media coverage and "Imprtance" so to see this video is amazing to me. #2, Its not relevant anymore. Coal mines, salt slicks, and the rivers that cross through aren't used as much due to trains and truck fleets, and the coal mines closing down don't need the river traffic anymore. And lastly, people are all in cities now, they don't understand the history of what this country was built on. Folks like me who live here are 'uneducated hicks and country folks' they say. But, towns like Shawnee and the surrounding are were the foundation they look down on now that its not as populated, when it should be celebrated.

[tamarabriddick]

I am the treasurer for the John Marshall house bank and museum. Sally we would love to have you come back to Old Shawneetown and we can give you a tour of the town and tell you what all those wonderful things are

[AndyA]

Towns like this and others you visited in Southern Illinois demonstrate how much the state has changed their focus from the southern part of the state to Chicago over many decades. There is significant history to the state of Illinois in that area. Little or no real effort gets put into capturing the history of the architecture or really capturing the story of what was. And obviously there is little preservation effort going on as most of the money for things like that isn't available directly in these areas and are instead spent about 300 miles to the North. Not that all of it is worth saving, but shouldn't some of it be worth a long-term effort? Sad to say, but go see it before it isn't there... and thanks for the video.

[chrisbrown]

Marquis De Lafayette was a french general who trained American soldiers during the American revolution. Lafayette visited the cemetery in Shawneetown to pay his respects to his deceased friend Brigadier General Thomas Posey who was in the American Revolution.

[billyjack]

Another important thing is that the Trail of Tears went through Shawnee Town. The Cherokee had to cross the Ohio River during winter.

[powlperc]

It’s good to see Cave in Rock, Old Shawneetown. I’m from southern Illinois. Your historic videos with a comedic twist are most enjoyable! 😄

[LyonsArcade]

Sally I am very happy to see that your great little channel is finally starting to get the views it deserves! Congratulations on your recent success, you deserve it.

[dianegross]

I had relatives that ran a small grocery store in town, probably 100 hundred years ago. And still have many in the new Shawneetown. Also the lines on the pillars of the bank pillars show the height of the flooding. The cemetery is an interesting place to visit too.

[brianamcghee]

My grandma is in her early 90s and she grew up there. She used to drive us out there and show us the waterlines on the bank and we would stop and eat at Rudy’s in New Town on the way out. Pretty much all the locals refer to the area as ‘Old Town’ and ‘New Town’. My Grandma used to tell me stories of Charlie Birger and his gang. My husband has roots that go pretty deep in this town as well. Great Video!

[frankwurth]

Keep in mind, the reason that these early centers of commerce in Illinois and other states were built in a flood zone, was the fact that most all commerce and travel was by the rivers and waterways. Not till the Rail Roads came into the fore front, every one traveled by boat. Hence the reason they built up on the river bank. This small rement of town was still quite active till the last series of major floods in 93 and 95 pretty much destroyed it for good. Those abandoned buildings you show were victims of those floods and those fire trucks as well.

[marksnyder]

Another fun look at another great piece of our history. The bank building is 😍. That iron work is next level. I have seen many an old building in the US and Europe, but whoever did that work was a master among masters. I found the "death" of the old town very sad. My late mother was in the 1937 flood, in Cincinnati. She was 12. She remembered her and her twin sister being rescued from their second story window by some neighbors who had a rowboat. I am amazed at how many places one finds the Shawnee. Aside from Oklahoma, where they were relocated, one finds them in Kansas, Missouri, and Illinois. I always thought of them as a more Eastern tribe. My great x 5 grandmother Rachel Crafton was Shawnee. She was the daughter of celebrated Chief Cornstalk. She married a white man who was a storekeeper by trade. She lived from 1764 to 1843 and had a lot of children. She died and was buried in Northeast Indiana. I also enjoyed the spiders! My last name means that I was at times called Spider. I learned what amazing creatures they are. I never kill a spider unless it is venomous to humans. I really would love to visit Old Shawneetown. I might never leave. 😉

[ronaldclements]

I’m from that area. The history you presented was spot on. You should check out Cave-in-Rock. There was a move scene shot there from How The West Was Won.

[richardgordon]

Grew up in new town, and still only live 20 minutes away, pops still lives there. Inside Layton’s they used to have everyone sign the walls with markers, 2011 floods sandbagged the heck out of the town, caught the mayors white donkey, and have roamed those streets like crazy as a child walking to the levee to fish as a kid. It’s a shame people don’t realize how much outside of Chicago there is in Illinois.

[edwarddrone]

My father was born in that town and to be moved out during the flood. He was only five years old. He grew in “New Town” in a house moved from “Old Town”,

[nancypritchett]

I’m from the area and have heard of shawneetown many times but I learned a lot from your video that i didn’t know before. Thank you for making history come alive!!!

[guppie]

Love your curiosity and informed but natural commentary, so hard to do when you're filming & know people will be watching. You both are great.

[scottnielsen]

I read that either one man or two men wanted to open up a trading post at Fort Dearborn which was located in Chicago by Michigan Ave and the Chicago River. They went to a bank in Shawneetown to get a loan to start the business, but were turned down. The reason was that the banker thought that the area ( what was to become Chicago ) was too far off and that nothing was ever to become of that area.

[nomorenames]

This is immediately one of my favorite channels. This is what I love to do on my road trips too!