Amish Country
Discover the simple pleasures and charms of Illinois region

To discover a lifestyle very different from that of most Americans, visit Arcola and Arthur–anchor towns of Illinois’ largest Amish community. Visitors will have the opportunity to appreciate simpler times and pleasures in the two towns and surrounding area.

Throughout the region, you can shop for treasures in authentic Amish stores, enjoy delicious homemade food and learn about the distinctive faith and lifestyle of the community, which contains more than 3,500 members.

Amish people began immigrating to North America from Switzerland as early as 1632 following a break with the Mennonite Church. They sought to live a more strict and simple life. Today there are Amish congregations in at least 19 states and one Canadian province.

Arcola’s simple allure

Visitors to the area soon discover that the Amish lifestyle is similar to that of 19th-century pioneers. They consider electricity, telephones and other such modern conveniences to be too “worldly.” Amish believe the Bible teaches a distinct separation between the church and the world, and that is why they have not accepted the many cultural changes that have been introduced with society’s progress. For instance, they don’t believe the automobile is wicked in itself, rather the lifestyle it suggests–a breakaway from the family and a focus on glamour and vanity.

Holding fast to their traditions and beliefs, the Amish have chosen not to succumb to modern farming methods and still plant and harvest their crops with horse-drawn implements. However, many have opened “cottage businesses” at their farm sites to improve their economic situation.

Shopping in authentic Amish stores is one of the most unique opportunities the area offers because they produce and sell some of the most beautifully crafted furniture that can be found, lovely handmade quilts, delicious bakery items and sweet homemade candy.

Begin your day tour in Arcola, which is just west of Interstate 57 on Highway 133. Though the town is just east of the Amish community, many Amish influences are prevalent. Stop first at the Arcola Chamber of Commerce and Welcome Center. Take Route 133 to Oak Street and turn right to get to the center, which is at 135 N. Oak St. This restored train depot contains a museum of railroad memorabilia and a large collection of antique brooms and brushes said to be the largest in the United States.

Arcola claims to be the “Broom Corn Capital of the World,” and you can still buy old-fashioned brooms as well as their newfangled cousins at the Welcome Center and in shops throughout town. Arcola’s annual Broom Corn Festival is held the weekend after Labor Day, featuring a sweeping contest, broom-making demonstrations, arts and crafts, a flea market, food booths and more.

In addition, Raggedy Ann fans will admire the depot’s Johnny Gruelle display. Gruelle, an Arcola native, was the creator of the famous rag doll. Original drawings, historical Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls and books are included in the exhibit.

To help you tour the region, pick up maps and information on area attractions at the Welcome Center. The center is open 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Monday–Saturday and closed on Sunday. For details, call (217) 268-4530 or 1-800-336-5456, or visit www.arcola-il.org.

Next, learn about the Amish way of life at the Illinois Amish Interpretive Center and Museum. Located at 111 S. Locust in downtown Arcola, the center houses a collection of artifacts drawn from the Amish community of central Illinois, arranged in a variety of exhibits depicting the history of the Amish movement. Among the exhibits are a century-old buggy, old quilts, the interior of a barn and the interior of Amish homes past and present. The center also arranges tours of the Amish countryside and meals in Amish homes. Hours are 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Monday–Saturday. For details, call (217) 268-3599 or 1-888-45-AMISH (1-888-452-6474), or visit the Web site www.amishcenter.com.

If you’d like to purchase Amish-crafted goods, Arcola offers a patchwork of unique shops with Amish furniture and quilts, crafts, antiques and clothing. Plus, other craft, antique and specialty stores can be found.

Also downtown, visit the Johnny Gruelle Raggedy Ann & Andy Museum, which was founded by Gruelle’s granddaughter, Joni Gruelle. The items on display help describe how Raggedy Ann came to be and shed light on Gruelle, a master illustrator and children’s author. The exhibits make you feel like you are in one of Gruelle’s fanciful illustrations. Hours are 10 a.m.– 4:30 p.m. Tuesday–Saturday. It is open by appointment only in January and February. Call (217) 268-4908 or visit www.raggedyann-museum.org.

To further pay tribute to Gruelle and celebrate his work, the town hosts the Raggedy Ann and Andy Festival annually on the weekend before Memorial Day, featuring parades, entertainment, exhibits and more.

Probably the largest tourist attraction in Illinois Amish Country is Rockome Gardens (take Route 133 west and follow signs). Arthur Martin, an Arthur native, began constructing the elaborate gardens as a hobby in 1939. He brought in tons of native Illinois rock, which was broken by hand and laid in cement to form the gardens’ unique stonework and fences.

In addition to the remarkable rock and floral gardens, the complex features a variety of other attractions. There is a family-style restaurant, an antique museum, a haunted cave, train rides, a petting zoo, a blacksmith shop, an authentic Amish house, buggy rides, a tree house and a horse-powered sawmill. Plus, browse through a variety of shops on the grounds where you can purchase crafts, furniture, bakery goods, candy, fresh-ground corn meal and more.

In some shops, you can purchase authentic, faceless Amish dolls. These rag dolls have no faces as the Amish consider the reproduction of a person’s features to be a “graven image” and therefore unholy. (Likewise, Amish people do not like to have their photograph taken, and visitors to the area are asked to abide by their wishes.)

Rockome Gardens is open 10 a.m.–6 p.m. Wednesday–Sunday from May through October. It is closed from November through March. Admission is $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $4 for children 4–12. For hours and more details, call (217) 268-4106, or visit www.rockome.com online.

Activity in Arthur

To learn more about the Amish faith, head to Arthur, which is about nine miles west of Arcola. Information, brochures and maps are available at the Arthur Visitor’s Center, which is located at 106 E. Progress St. The center is open 8 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Monday–Saturday. For more information, call 1-800-72-AMISH (1-800-722-6474) or (217) 543-2242. Or visit www.arthuril.com or www.illinoisamishcountry.com.

Downtown Arthur is the main trading center of the Illinois Amish settlement, and it bustles with activity daily. The shops that line Vine Street offer a variety of merchandise that rival big-city stores: clothing, Amish-crafted oak and pine furniture, crafts, ceramics, collectibles, cheese, candy, fresh and silk flowers and books.

Several restaurants in town serve sumptuous food to delight any palate, including pizza, seafood and homemade country fare. Or bring a picnic lunch and enjoy it in Eberhardt Park.

During the year, Arthur offers a number of festivals, including a Quilt Show in April, the Moultrie-Douglas County Fair in mid-July, the Mennonite Relief Sale the last part of August, the Amish Country Cheese Festival over Labor Day Weekend, the Central Illinois Bragging Rights barbecue competition in the fall and many more events.

For those who wish to stay in the area more than a day, several bed-and-breakfast establishments and a few motels are spread throughout Arthur and Arcola. There are more motels and restaurants in nearby Mattoon (about 15 miles south of Arcola).

To get to the Illinois Amish Country from St. Louis, follow Interstate 55 north about 20 miles to Interstate 70, and follow I-70 east about 84 miles to the junction for Interstate 57. Take I-57 north about 42 miles to Route 133 (west), which leads to Arcola (exit #203). Arthur is about nine miles further west. The approximate round-trip mileage is 310 miles.

Back to Day Tours Index