Central Illinois Bed and Breakfast the Market Street Inn

Magnificent Mansions star at the Taylorville Home Tour which will be Friday, December 4 and Saturday, December 5 from 10 am to 6 pm.

The feature home is a 16,200 sq ft home built in the early 1960′s.

The 1883 home shown here is also another of the fine homes on the tour.

Additionally the restored Courthouse dome and rotunda will be on the tour. Tickets are available for $9.00 per person. Children under 12 are free when accompanied by a ticketed adult. A special “Winter Getaway” package is available for only $26.00 which includes the tour and “Taking Tea with Mrs. Lincoln” scheduled for Saturday only and tickets for this are only available at Cottage Rose Antiques and Crafts in Taylorville, IL. This authentically British tea will begin when the doors open at 10:30 am for a promenade amog tables set by local hostesses and serving at 11:00 am. Each guest will be served 6 sandwiches, a scone, three desserts and hot tea. A vintage and contemporary style show will be presented during tea time. For advance tickets, which are limited, call 217-824-9447. Make your reservation for your overnight stay at the Market Street Inn and ask for our Christmas Home Tour Special:   one night, single occupancy in whirlpool tub room w/ tea & tour     150.00;  one night, double occupancy w/ tea & tour, 175.00;   two nights w/ tea & tour, single occupancy –275.00;  two nights w/ tea & tour, double occupancy–295.00.   Act now due to limited ticket availability for tea.  Non-cancelable.

There will be a very interesting lecture on Lincoln at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum a week from today on Feb. 9 at 7 p.m.

Richard Carwardine

If you are looking to learn and experience more about our 16th President while staying at our Springfield IL lodging, this lecture will be a great chance to gain an experts insight into Lincoln’s mind.

“The Last Lincoln Lecture” will be held by Oxford scholar Richard Carwardine. Carwardine is hoping to discuss the position of Lincoln within the global setting and examining what Lincoln believed the United States’ relationship was with the rest of the world.

He is the author of Lincoln: A Life of Purpose and Power. This is just one of the many oppurtunities to learn and explore Linconland during your stay at the Market Street Inn.

“Mary was quick, gay and in the social world the more brilliant. She loved show and power, and was one of the most ambitious women I ever knew. She used to contend, when a girl, to her friends in Kentucky, that she was destined to marry a President. I have heard her say that myself, and after mingling in society in Springfield, she repeated the seemingly absurd and idle boast.”

The 16th first lady of the United States was no ordinary woman, as you would expect.

She seems to have possessed a fiery nature, one which sometimes got the better of her, ever since childhood. While you stay at our near Springfield, IL lodging, we hope you will have a chance to learn more about the Lincoln family.

It seems to be just this personality, and the quick wit that accompanied it, that attracted Abe Lincoln to Mary.

They met in Springfield, IL where Mary was living with the sister that gave the above quote. It was at a ball that they met for the first time, and the dark-haired and lovely Mary caught Lincoln’s eye.

Mary Todd Lincoln at the time of her marriage to Abe Lincoln

He is quoted as saying to her: “Miss Todd, I should like to dance with you in the worst way.”

Abe was Mary’s suitor for half a year before they became engaged in 1840, However, Abe broke off the engagement in January of 1841. It seems he felt very unsure about the prospect of marriage. Through correspondence with friends, Lincoln historians have gathered that he felt it was wise in judgment to marry, but wondered how he would feel as a married man.

I suppose feeling won out eventually, because in November of 1842, Mary and Abe were married. It was, if you will, a long-delayed spur-the-moment decision. They decided that day, on November 4, that they would be married that night.

Although it seems their marriage was a stormy one, they had a powerful partnership, and Mary fell into a great depression and mourning after her husband’s assassination.

We hope this little history about Mary Todd Lincoln has sparked your interest. There will be many more resources for information on the Lincoln family at Lincoln Bicentennial events.