Discover Abraham Lincoln territory in central Illinois

Consider taking a vacation trip back to the time of Abraham Lincoln and his life in Illinois, and start making your plans with the resources of a few helpful Web sites.

Lincoln's Springfield, Ill., home still stands at the Lincoln Home National Historic Site -- http://www.nps.gov/liho/ -- where you can glance through their "Virtual Tours" of snapshots. Go to "Plan Your Visit" to get directions from Interstates 72 and 55 and look for "Lincoln Home Link Page," which has connections to other Lincoln-related Web sites, especially "Illinois Historic Preservation" sites. One site to try for fun is the "Virtual Tour Of Lincoln Home and other Springfield Sites," a set of 360-degree panoramas.

Springfield also is the home of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum -- http://www.alplm.org/home.html -- which says the full tour through the museum takes two to three hours.

For other things to see and do around the city, the local Convention & Visitors Bureau -- http://www.visit-springfieldillinois.com/home.htm -- has what you need to know ranging from places to stay and eat to hiking trails, shopping and other local historic sites, including the Illinois Capitol. Take a look at their "Discover Abraham Lincoln 3-Day Getaway."

If you're heading there this month, you can take in the Illinois State Fair -- http://www.illinoisstatefair.info/ -- but be sure to turn down the volume on your computer speakers before you make the connection. You could also click on "Skip Intro" to avoid the sound but then you'd miss the show.

Near the end of August, head up Interstate 55 northeast of Springfield to the Lincoln Art & Balloon Festival -- http://lincolnillinois.com/balloonfest/index.htm -- a three-day celebration of carnival rides, hot air balloons and other fun things.

Elsewhere outside Springfield, Looking For Lincoln -- http://www.lookingforlincoln.com/ -- has put together a collection of two- and three-day road trips that will take you to locations Lincoln visited all over central Illinois. They also provide links to historic towns such as Galesburg, Ill., site of Lincoln's fifth debate with Stephen A. Douglas, his opponent for a Senate seat, and the home of poet and Lincoln scholar Carl Sandburg. You could visit Mount Pulaski, Ill., where the courthouse in which he worked is still standing, or Decatur, Ill., where he argued cases in a log courthouse.

South of Springfield, Illinois was crossed by the National Road -- http://www.byways.org /browse/byways/13749/travel.html -- a route you can follow through small towns and scenic countryside.

Of more modern vintage, historic Route 66 passed through Springfield on its way between Chicago and Los Angeles, and Illinois Route 66 -- http://www.illinoisroute66.org/ -- has history and details on spots to visit.

Central Illinois Tourism -- http://www.visitcentralillinois.com/ -- can show you still more spots to explore in the region, but when you're looking for attractions you'll have to use the menu to see entries for individual counties.

For the rest of the state, the official Enjoy Illinois -- http://www.enjoyillinois.com/ -- has vacation ideas for every place from the shore of Lake Michigan to the Ohio Valley.