Welcome.  We are up and going.  Excited about you joining us for several adventures in 2017 and 2018. We have planned four trips in the next few months.   We will be posting trip details regularly.

Our first trip is planned for April 26, 2017.  We will day tripping to Allerton Park located near Monticello, Illinois. 

First a little background about our destination:

Allerton Park was built as the private estate of Robert Henry Allerton. Named “The Farms,” the estate was the center of the 12,000-acre Illinois agricultural enterprise assembled during the late 1800s by Robert’s father Samuel. The family wealth extended well beyond Illinois as Samuel Allerton amassed more than 80,000 acres of farmland across the Midwest. The elder Allerton was a founding principal of the First National Bank of Chicago, and held prominent leadership positions in five major stockyards, including the Union Stockyards of Chicago.

Although he oversaw his father’s interests in the Central Illinois farms, Robert Allerton’s passion was art. Educated in Europe, he travelled extensively in winter, and became an avid art collector, philanthropist and artist who viewed the landscape as his canvas. Allerton believed that through nature, art could surround and embrace every human. This belief in the artistic power of nature led to his lifelong commitment to stewardship of the land and its natural elements. With the help of John Gregg, his protégé and, later, adopted son, Robert spent decades shaping the Illinois farmland to create ever-evolving landscapes that captured the natural beauty of the woodland and prairie, and formal gardens which served as an outdoor gallery for the sculpture he collected during his travels around the world.

Befitting a splendid Georgian manor house, the Formal Gardens feature extensive plantings and over 100 ornaments and sculptures to discover.

“He created a picture in the garden. Yes, he painted with vegetation instead of oil and canvas.” Robert Allerton was an artist of plants, an artist appreciated by none more than John Gregg Allerton, his adopted son, as revealed in Robert Allerton: The Private Man and The Public Gifts, written by Martha Burgin and Maureen Holtz.

Allerton’s brilliance can be seen in the careful placement of each flower, the deliberate turn of every path, and the guided movement of color throughout his 14 formal gardens. As you stroll through his inspired creation, you are transported from daily life into a place where cultural artifacts enhance Mother Nature’s best.

Allerton’s intention of restful inner reflection will fill your mind, replacing discord with the harmony of natural and manmade beauty.

Allerton painted with flowers, sculpted with espaliered apple trees, and composed with quiet footsteps leading from his main house, through his masterpiece of refined landscape and out into the unrestrained exquisiteness of nature.

One of the Seven Wonders of Illinois, The Park consists of over 1,500 acres, including the Sangamon River, floodplains, lowland and upland forests, a meadow, a 30-acre demonstration prairie and over 14 miles of hiking trails.

Allerton Park has long been recognized as one of Illinois’ most significant natural areas. It is located in the Grand Prairie Natural Division (Schwegman, et al. 1973) and contains outstanding examples of old-growth floodplain and upland forest. It supports populations of the state endangered eastern massasauga (Sistrurus catenatus), state threatened Kirtland’s watersnake (Clonophis kirtlandii), black-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus erythropthalmus) and Mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus).

Allerton Park is one of only three areas in central Illinois with over 500 acres of contiguous forest. Large forested tracts are important breeding areas for many neotropical migrant birds whose populations have declined dramatically as forest fragmentation has created smaller and more isolated woodlots.
The high diversity of natural communities and native species, especially forest trees and wildflowers, and the park’s location along an unmodified reach of the Sangamon River also contribute to the high natural quality of the site. A portion of the site has been recognized as a National Natural Landmark by the U. S. Park Service.

Allerton natural areas comprise 95% of the Park. They constitute one of the most valuable forests in Illinois.

Our plans are to leave the credit union offices at 8:30 that morning and travel to Allerton Park via private coach.  At  10:00 we will explore the formal gardens, art work and other attractions at the park.  We will be met by a volunteer guide to help us with our visit. 

We will then travel to Monticello and enjoy lunch at a local restaurant.  You will have an opportunity to shop the many small local stores located on and near the square.

We will return to credit union offices at appoximately 5:00 p.m.

Pricing and reservations will be available on or about January 23, 2017