The eyes of the state were on the King City Thursday as the Illinois Supreme Court conducted business at our appellate courthouse downtown. The activity was part of a celebration of a new 9-foot tall statue of Abraham Lincoln, who argued the State vs. The Illinois Central Railroad case here as a young attorney.
Several generations of locals have passed along the story of Lincoln’s connection to Mt. Vernon. Now, there is a permanent fixture outside the Appellate Courthouse — which hosted state supreme court cases until shortly before the 20th century. Aside from a visit by the Illinois Supreme Court, a dedication ceremony was held at the appellate courthouse, with many discussing the amount of work that went into getting the statue commissioned and brought to Mt. Vernon.
A lot of work went into raising money for the statue in a short period of time. We applaud those with the sense of community pride who helped make it possible. Your work helped make Thursday a special day in the King City.
