Before it empties into the Mississippi River, the Illinois River runs parallel to it for several miles. The peninsula formed by the two rivers is Calhoun County. You can drive into the county on a handful of roads at the northern border, you can cross the Illinois River at one bridge about halfway down the county, or you can enter by ferry.
We chose the third option, catching the Brussels Ferry, the landing of which was just a couple miles from Pere Marquette Lodge where we were staying.
We drove into the small town of Brussels. The list of attractions in the county is short, but it does include this building, the Brussels Jail, built in 1876 and last used in 1952. It was mostly used for drunks.
We bought pops at this nearby store.
We drove around a bit, then took another ferry across the Mississippi into Missouri.
We ferried back late in the afternoon and decided to tour the county. There are 82 barns on a barn quilt tour. We made no effort to find them, but noticed them when they came along. The rolling farmland reminded me of central Wisconsin. It was rural, but the roads were busier than I would expect. I got the feeling that some commuters from St. Louis have found the county, only about 30 miles away via the ferry. (What they do when the ferry shuts down during floods and when the river freezes, I don’t know.)
We arrived back in Brussels at sundown and went to the Wittmond Motel for supper. The business was started as a trading post by Conrad Wittmond, a German immigrant, in 1847. In 1885, the family built on to the structure and opened a motel. It’s now a restaurant — they no longer rent rooms because of building codes that require sprinklers.
The dining room was almost empty, but for some reason they put us right next to the only other patrons, a huge family that was celebrating an anniversary. We didn’t let it bother us. (The couple in this photo came later.)
The food was family style — we ate what was given to us. This night it was chicken-noodle soup, coleslaw, applesauce, rolls, pork sausage, celery, carrots, pickled beets, candied apples, corn relish, corn, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, fried chicken, roast beef and dumplings. All of it was good, and we both tried some of everything. We split an amazing piece of blackberry cobbler for dessert. All of it only cost us about $30.
The old store is now an antique store.
We got in the car to leave, then decided to go back inside and buy a large peanut jar.
The owners are very aware of the historic appeal of the place, but they didn’t overdo it. We got the feeling they were just doing things they way they’d always done them. If we ever get back to the area, we’ll be back to this place.