Downtown Ottawa

Ottawa, Illinois, is an adorable historic town in north-central Illinois. On vacation near there last week, we spent a morning touring the downtown, but I think we could have spent several days there. We probably would have seen more of the town, taking a walking tour, except that the temperature was in the mid-thirties that particular day. The only good thing about that was that we were the only people out and about. 

 I already alluded to Washington Park in my blog post of April 5, so I won’t repeat myself. I will share one more picture though.

 A series of outdoor murals brings the history of Ottawa to life, including this one of General W.H.L. Wallace, who had been a friend of Abraham Lincoln’s.

 The LaSalle County Courthouse

 Jordan Block Park. As cold as it was outside that day, it was great to see flowers blooming and green grass.

 We didn’t buy any Wisconsin Kringle at the Ottawa bakery, but we did pick up some treats for later.

 The Scouting Heritage Museum. The little old man who was volunteering there that day followed us around the entire time, talking non-stop, making it hard to enjoy the museum, but he meant well. (That’s a picture of a scouting uniform, and not the little old man.)

 Before we left the downtown area, we took a tour of Reddick Mansion

 

 It was built before the Civil War for an Irish immigrant, William Reddick. At the time it was the most lavish home in the Midwest, having been built for a whopping $25,000, certainly a small fortune at the time. 

 One last cool old building, the Ottawa Visitor’s Center.