Menard County is built on a legacy of connection between people, places and generations. History is honored, community is valued, and the future is always unfolding.
Where Lincoln's Story Began
Nestled on the bluffs above the Sangamon River, Petersburg was surveyed by a young Abraham Lincoln in 1835–36— and the town has never let that history fade. The stately Menard County Courthouse anchors the downtown square, Victorian homes line the tree-shaded streets, and Lincoln's sweetheart Ann Rutledge rests in Oakland Cemetery just south of town. Two miles down the road, Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site draws visitors from across the country. Petersburg is also the birthplace of poet Edgar Lee Masters, author of Spoon River Anthology, whose boyhood home still stands. Breweries, wineries, antique shops, lodging, boutiques, and two golf courses make it as welcoming today as it was in Lincoln's time.
Small Town Spirit, Big Community Heart
Athens is a city of nearly 2,000 in the southeastern corner of Menard County, just 14 miles north of Springfield — close enough to the capital for convenience, far enough to keep its unhurried small-town character. The Long Nine Museum tells the story of Lincoln's legislative colleagues and the county's deep political roots, while dining options, a strong school district, public library, and active parks keep the community forward-looking. Every spring, Athens Glory Days brings the whole community together for a parade, live music, carnival, and vendors — the kind of festival that reminds you why small towns still matter.
A Musical Name on the Prairie
Founded in 1857, Tallula takes its name from a Native American word said to mean "trickling water" — a nod to the abundant springs that once characterized the area. In its heyday, the village bustled with hotels, coal mines, a bottling plant, an opera house, and a population approaching 1,000. Today Tallula is quieter — a close-knit farming community of a few hundred souls set amid the rolling prairie of southwestern Menard County. Situated along Route 123 about ten miles from Petersburg, it's the kind of place where neighbors still know each other's names and the land still shapes the rhythm of daily life.
Tallula does not currently maintain a public government website.
Named for a Pioneer, Built to Last
Greenview was laid out in October 1857 by pioneer William Engle and named in honor of William G. Greene, the man who convinced the railroad to come through town. That early foresight paid off — the village was established in 1869 and still retains some of its original buildings and the families who first settled this part of Illinois. Situated in the northeastern corner of the county along Route 29, Greenview is a proud, self-sufficient community with deep agricultural roots and a quiet resilience that characterizes the best of rural Illinois.
Where the Railroad Met the Prairie
Oakford was surveyed and platted in March 1872 for proprietors William Oakford and William Colson, in the midst of a fine agricultural district in the county's northwest corner. The village owes its very existence to the railroad — Oakford acquired a half-interest in the town site in exchange for his influence in securing a station along the line. The surrounding landscape carries its own Lincoln connection: it was in this part of Menard County that Lincoln's old friends the Armstrongs lived, and the infamous incident that led to Lincoln's famous "Almanac Trial" unfolded just a few miles from here. Today Oakford is a small, quiet community with wineries, boutiques, and restaurants, where grain elevators still punctuate the horizon and the prairie stretches wide in every direction.
Oakford does not currently maintain a public government website.
