ILLINOIS LEGENDS

Auburn - Home of Brick 66

After leaving Chatham, Route 66 travelers will continue south watching for Alpha and Snell Roads to access historic alignments of old Route 66. At 5029 Snell Road is Becky's Barn, a Route 66 snack shop, information center, and antique store. Rick and Becky have a unique collection of antiques and collectibles as well as a recreated vintage-style snack shop, and interesting Route 66 memorabilia. Be sure to sign their guest book during your visit, which is known as the "cool bus," -- yes, a real bus, where you sign your name on the inside.   

Just in front of Becky's Barn is the bypassed brick portion of old Route 4 that is is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Welcome to Becky's Barn, just north of Auburn, Illinois.

Kathy Weiser, October, 2011.

The first village of Auburn was laid out in 1835 by brothers, Asa and George Eastman, who had accumulated land all along Sugar Creek. Pleasantly located on the east half of section three at a high elevation, it commanded a fine view.  It was named by their sister Hannah, for their home town of Auburn, Maine. The Eastman brothers then built a steam-powered flour mill and the Sugar Creek Tan yard the next year.  

Though the town was heavily promoted, by 1840, the village contained only about six houses and a handful or residents. However, it did contain a two-story tavern, owned by a man named William S. Swaney, who had bought several lots in the fledgling city. Swaney, a blacksmith by profession, rented space to another man named John Smith for a blacksmith shop on the ground level. An Ohio man with a large family, Swaney was often absent for weeks at a time and it was rumored that he was a professional gambler. Traveling along in a fancy two-horse carriage, he was said to have "worked" the Illinois River towns, plying his profession. With the neighborhood already abuzz with speculation about his mysterious journeys, the gossip became really rampant when he failed to return in 1843. When his wife confirmed the man was her husband, the town rumors were found to have been true. Evidently, Swaney had been killed by a disgruntled loser, who had taken his revenge and his money back from the gambler.

A professional gambler, but NOT William S. Swaney.

This image available for photographic prints HERE!

Auburn also sported a small nursery, from which fruit trees were dispensed to the farmers of the neighborhood, and a cabinet shop. But the Eastman brothers’ project to develop the new town was a failure, and they closed their mill in Auburn and moved to Springfield in 1841. However, the town continued on, primarily because of location of a stage stop on the stage line from St. Louis, Missouri to Springfield, Illinois and the Sugar Creek Post Office, which had been established in Auburn in 1839.

When the Alton & Sangamon Railroad announced that it would build tracks through the area, small Auburn felt sure it was destined to grow. In anticipation, William Roach and George Organ erected a substantial store building in Auburn in 1852. However, another man named Philip Wineman, who had purchased nearly 200 acres a mile south of Auburn, offered a free donation of land to the railroad about a mile south of Auburn on the west side of Sugar Creek. Wineman also laid out a “paper town” to support the railroad, which he named after himself. A fierce struggle quickly ensued between the two factions, but in the end, Wineman prevailed. Though there were no topological barriers preventing the line from passing through Auburn, Wineman had obviously cut a deal with the railroad.

Before long, most of the businesses of the old townsite picked up and moved to the new town, which they renamed “Auburn,” and the old site was then known as “Old Auburn.” Later, as some of the buildings burned in a fire and others torn down and hauled off, the old site was sold and converted into a cornfield.

Situated on the new railroad, the townsite began to grow. The first merchandise was sold by Ham & Poley, who established their store in 1853. One of the first manufacturing entities was Morse's Wagon, Carriage, and Agricultural Implement Manufactory, which was established in 1856, eventually employing 20 men.

In 1872, the Auburn Bank was organized and two years later, the Auburn Citizen began publication and is still printing newspapers today. By the early 1880’s there were eight school houses and eight church buildings in the Auburn Township. The city of Auburn boasted four grocery stores, two dry goods stores, three saloons, two hardware stores, three restaurants, a furniture store, brick factory, and numerous other small businesses.

By 1890, the population had grown to 874 and by 1900, Auburn boasted almost 1,300 people. By then the town was mostly supported by several manufacturing businesses, turning out flour, carriages and farm implements.

Over the years, the town continued to develop, welcoming Route 66 travelers when it barreled through in 1926. Today, this small town of about 4,500 people provides the advantages of a small town while being only minutes from the State Capitol.

The west side of the square in Auburn. The middle gray building is

 the Auburn Citizen Newspaper, which began in 1874.

Photo by Randy von Liski, myoldpostcards  

A number of old buildings can still be seen on Auburn's downtown historic square. Turn east on Jefferson Street from IL-4 and continue to Fifth Street.

Moving southward on your Route 66 journey, continue on IL-4 to Thayer, just about 3.5 miles down the road.  

More Information:

City of Auburn

324 West Jefferson Street
Auburn, Illinois  62615
217-438-6151

© Kathy Weiser/Legends of America, October, 2010.

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