Free & Cheap Things to Do in Springfield

History & Culture

The only home Abraham Lincoln ever owned, preserved exactly as it was when the Lincoln family left for Washington in 1861. Free guided tours take visitors through the restored 1850s rooms where Lincoln raised his family and prepared to become president. The surrounding four-block neighborhood is also preserved, offering a genuine glimpse of 19th-century Springfield.

Address: 426 S 7th St, Springfield, IL 62701

Tip: Free timed-entry tickets are required for the home tour — pick them up at the visitor center on arrival. The surrounding historic neighborhood is open to walk freely without tickets. Arrive early in summer as same-day tickets can sell out.

History & Culture

The premier Lincoln museum in the country, with immersive life-size exhibits, original manuscripts, artifacts, and theatrical special effects that bring the Lincoln story to life in a way few presidential museums can match. The Union Theatre shows two original productions — one on Lincoln's life and one on haunted Springfield — both included with admission.

Address: 212 N 6th St, Springfield, IL 62701

Tip: Budget at least 3 hours — the museum is far larger than it looks. The two included theatrical shows are highlights — check show times on arrival. Free admission offered on Lincoln's Birthday (Feb. 12) each year. The library half (separate building) is free and houses the original Lincoln documents.

History & Culture

One of Frank Lloyd Wright's greatest early Prairie Style masterpieces, built in 1902 and considered the best-preserved Wright home in the world. The house retains 35 of Wright's original art glass windows, 100 pieces of original white oak furniture, and three complete sets of light fixtures — all designed by Wright himself. Free guided tours are the only way to see the interior.

Address: 301 E Lawrence Ave, Springfield, IL 62703

Tip: Tours are by reservation only and capacity is limited — book ahead at the Illinois DNR website. Tours run Thursday–Sunday. The house is only a short walk from the Lincoln sites, making it easy to combine into a full day of Springfield history.

History & Culture

Abraham Lincoln's burial place in Oak Ridge Cemetery, marked by a 117-foot granite obelisk built in 1874 with bronze statues of Lincoln and Civil War-era figures around the base. Inside the tomb, visitors walk past a series of sculpted bronze tableaux to Lincoln's red granite cenotaph; a tradition has visitors rubbing the bronze nose of Lincoln's bust at the entrance for good luck.

Address: 1500 Monument Avenue, Springfield, IL 62702

Tip: Open daily: Mar–Oct 9am–5pm, Nov–Feb 9am–4pm. Free parking lot adjacent. Pair with a walk through the rest of Oak Ridge Cemetery — also free, and the second-most-visited cemetery in the US.

History & Culture

A meticulous reconstruction of Illinois's 1839–1876 statehouse on the original Springfield town square, where Lincoln served as a state legislator, argued cases as a lawyer, and delivered his 1858 'House Divided' speech accepting the Republican Senate nomination. Self-guided exploration walks through the Senate chamber, House chamber, governor's office, and Supreme Court.

Address: 1 Old State Capitol Plaza, Springfield, IL 62701

Tip: Open daily 9am–5pm. Free 30-minute guided tours throughout the day; reservations welcome but not required. Two blocks from the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum.

History & Culture

Illinois's working capitol building since 1876 — a 361-foot-tall French Renaissance Revival landmark with a stained-glass-and-zinc rotunda dome that's taller than the U.S. Capitol's. Free guided tours visit the House and Senate galleries, Governor's reception area, Hall of Governors with portraits of every state governor, and the Old Supreme Courtroom.

Address: 401 S. 2nd Street, Springfield, IL 62756

Tip: Free tours offered daily. Walk-ins welcome for groups under 14. Call 217-782-2099 to schedule larger groups. Photo ID required; magnetometer screening at entrance. Free metered weekend parking nearby.

History & Culture

A full-scale reconstruction of the 1830s prairie village where Abraham Lincoln lived from 1831 to 1837, 20 miles northwest of Springfield in Petersburg. The 23 log buildings — cabins, stores, a tavern, a school, a blacksmith shop, the Rutledge Tavern and Mill — re-create the rough frontier community where Lincoln worked as a postmaster, surveyor, and storekeeper.

Address: 15588 History Lane, Petersburg, IL 62675

Tip: Site open Wed–Sun 9am–5pm; closed Mon–Tue. Visitor Center has an introductory film. Costumed interpreters work the village on weekends in season. Free parking.

History & Culture

One of only three governor's residences in the country (along with Virginia and Mississippi) continuously occupied since the mid-19th century — built 1855 in Greek Revival style and home to every Illinois governor since. The free 55-minute guided tour walks through state rooms hosting the official residence's collection of historic Illinois art.

Address: 410 E. Jackson Street, Springfield, IL 62701

Tip: Tours must be booked 48 hours in advance; limited to 15 guests per slot. Government-issued photo ID required for adults 18+. No photography inside. Tours pause for state functions — check the website.

Museums & Culture

The state's flagship natural and cultural history museum — and it's completely free. Three floors cover Illinois from Ice Age mastodons to Native American history to a re-created 1900s street of shops, plus the hands-on Mary Ann MacLean Play Museum built for kids under ten.

Address: 502 S Spring St, Springfield, IL 62706

Tip: Open daily (Sun from noon); the children's Play Museum closes an hour before the museum. It sits steps from the free Illinois State Capitol — pair the two for a zero-dollar afternoon.

Parks & Nature

A 100-acre living memorial on Lake Springfield designed by famed landscape architect Jens Jensen, planted entirely with trees and flowers native to the states Lincoln lived in. Six miles of trails wind past council rings, oak groves, and lake views — free from sunrise to sunset.

Address: 2301 East Lake Shore Dr, Springfield, IL 62712

Tip: The free nature center (closed Mondays) has exhibits and a bird room. Spring dogwood and redbud bloom and October color are peak; the lakeshore council rings make great picnic stops.

Wildlife & Education

Springfield's compact 14-acre zoo on Lake Springfield, home to 300 animals from penguins and cougars to spider monkeys, lemurs, and naked mole rats. Sized for a relaxed two-hour visit, with a $2 train ride and goat-feeding for pocket change.

Address: 1100 E Lake Shore Dr, Springfield, IL 62712

Tip: Open April through October daily, then fall weekends. Groups of 10+ get $4.50/$3.50 rates. Pair with Lincoln Memorial Garden five minutes away on the same lakeshore.

Gardens

A free 20-acre botanical garden inside Springfield's grandest park, with a domed conservatory, 9,000-square-foot greenhouse, 1,200 plant species, and downstate Illinois' largest formal rose garden — over 3,500 bushes strong each summer.

Address: 1740 W Fayette Ave, Springfield, IL 62704

Tip: Open daily from noon; free school and group tours by arrangement. June is peak rose bloom. The surrounding Washington Park adds a carillon that plays summer concerts.