Lincoln Memorial Garden
2301 East Lake Drive
Springfield, Illinois
62712-8908
Admission
Free to visitors, except during Special Events
Garden
Open year-round sunup to sundown
Nature Center/Gift Shop Hours
Tuesday – Saturday: 10AM – 4PM,
Sunday: 1PM – 4PM
Closed Monday
Parking
Free parking is available at the main entrance. Overflow parking and bus parking is available across the road.
Trails
The 100-acre site features six miles of interconnected trails that wind through the Garden’s restored prairies, woodlands and wetlands. The Garden also contains a dozen footbridges, a pond, and eight stone council rings, most with views of the lake. Trail surfaces are either wood-chipped or grass. Visitors are asked to stay on the marked trails. Benches, many inscribed with Lincoln quotes, are located throughout the Garden for rest and contemplation. The Ostermeier Prairie Center includes a half-mile accessible trail that passes through tallgrass prairies and around a small pond. A map of the trails is available here or at the Garden’s Nature Center.
Accessibility
Limited parking for persons with disabilities is available in the main parking lot, and next to the Garden’s Nature Center which can be reached via the Nature Center’s service drive. A paved sidewalk allows additional accessibility from the main parking lot to the Nature Center. At the midpoint of this sidewalk there is a new accessible trail loop leading through the woodlands to council ring #3 with its lake and meadow views, then to the Nature Center. The Ostermeier Prairie Center includes a half-mile accessible trail that passes through tallgrass prairies and around a small pond. Other trail surfaces are either wood-chipped or grass.
Things to Know
Renowned Landscape Architect Jens Jensen designed the Garden to be a Living Memorial to Abraham Lincoln. The trails, the council rings and the areas of woodland and prairie are all part of a thoughtfully created master plan. To maintain the integrity of that plan and protect it for future generations, we ask that visitors comply with the following requests. Please help us by respecting these rules.
- Please don’t walk dogs in the historic garden. Service dogs are an exception
- To protect the lakeshore, there is no swimming or fishing
- Group picnics are allowed with the permission of the staff. No alcohol is allowed.
- We provide a bike rack for your convenience, but riding bikes within the garden is not allowed.
- If you need to collect materials for a school project, please check first with staff in the Nature Center. They would be glad to provide you with information.
Lincoln Memorial Garden receives no direct taxpayer support and charges no fees for access to its 100 acres of natural woodlands, trails, prairie and meadow. The Garden is managed by the Abraham Lincoln Memorial Garden Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit that relies on financial donations from those who love the Garden and its mission. Please consider a donation at any level to preserve and protect Springfield’s local treasure. www.LincolnMemorialGarden.org/donate
Directions
Lincoln Memorial Garden is located just southeast of Springfield on the shore of Lake Springfield. The Garden is on East Lake Shore Drive, 2 ½ miles east of the Chatham/East Lake Drive interchange on Interstate 55 (exit 88) just south of the Lake Springfield bridge. The Garden can also be reached by taking the Stevenson Drive/East Lake Dr. exit off Interstate 55 (exit 94) and following East Lake Shore Drive for six miles.
Get Directions
Accommodations
Nearly 80 hotels/motels are located in the immediate Springfield area. Many of these are within a 10-minute drive of the Garden. For hotel information, contact the Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau: 800/545-7300 or go to www.visit-springfieldillinois.com.