Dwight Livingston Illinois - Top Sights 

• Dwight Sights – A Trip through Dwight Township, Livingston County
• Dwight Sights & Attractions
• - Dwight Historical Museum
• - Dwight Amtrak Station
• - Dwight Community Park
• - Dwight Public Library
• - Dwight Golf Club
• - Dwight Water Tower
• - Dwight Grain Elevator

Dwight Sights – A Trip through Dwight Township, Livingston County

What makes Dwight sights so special is the quiet way, with the story here snoring at every street corner, while I snore through the main street with my coffee. The town of Dwight, founded in 1854, grew from a small railway hub, which at that time formed the backbone of agricultural expansion in the heart of Livingston County. I feel that the old brick buildings in the centre – a relic of the time when steam locomotives still dominated the cityscape – tell more than any museum I have ever visited. Whoever comes from Chicago by car simply follows I‐55 to the south and then bends to US‐24; the ride is a short but refreshing outbreak from the big city jungle, and suddenly Dwight is in front of a well kept secret.

I have to admit that I cannot always understand the hype about the “small cities with charm” but here there is something authentic: the people who still order their fields and talk about the harvest in the evening in the local diner while watching the sunset over the wide prerie fields. So if you are looking for a place that is not overwhelmed by tourist streams, then Dwight is just the right place where Dwight sights are not loudly proclaimed, but quietly experienced.

Dwight Sights & Attractions

This guide invites you to stroll with me through the inconspicuous heart of Illinois, where I discovered my favorite places in Dwight – and yes, I confess, I have a bit of cynicism in my luggage, because most guides here just sell the field way feeling.

For me, the Dwight Historical Museum, which is housed in the old railway depot. I spent more time there than I would like to admit, because the exhibitions from local rail vehicles to old agricultural machinery are almost a mini-time course. The scent of old wood and the quiet click of the old signalling systems make you almost forget that you are standing in a tiny little town that has hardly more than a few hundred inhabitants. Parking is usually easy, except on Saturday night, it becomes a real problem because the annual “Railroad Festival” blocks the road.

A short walk (or a short sprint if you don't want to miss the train) leads to Dwight Amtrak Station. I don't quite understand the hype for train trips, but here the track is a meeting point for locals who take their daily shuttles to Chicago. The platform has a small waiting room that looks like it had designed a 1950s designer for an advertising poster – practical if you are in the rain, but also a perfect place to watch people at the “good-mountain-wind”.

If you want to escape from the city centre, the path leads to Dwight Community Park. The park is not just a national park, but the small pond, which is populated by ducks in the summer, and the old wooden bench, which I use repeatedly as a seat for my lunch break, have something tranquil. I once made a picnic with a friend, while an older couple spoke loudly about the best corn flask recipes – a real midwest experience.

A short detour to Dwight Public Library is worth it because the building itself is a piece of history. The library not only has a cozy reading room ambience, but also a small archive with old newspapers that I secretly browsed to learn more about the founding time of Dwight. The staff is friendly, but slightly annoyed when you ask for the latest bestsellers – here you prefer to read local history books, no wonder that the shelves are full of “dwight-chronics”.

For those who believe that a small place cannot offer sports activities, there is Dwight Golf Club. The 9-hole course is not exactly a PGA tournament terrain, but the gentle hills and the occasional “Plopp” of a lost ball in the bunkers give you the feeling of being part of an exclusive, though slightly slanted, golf community. I once played a game with a local peasant who told me that the green is better after the rain – a hint I will never forget.

Another, often overlooked landmark is the Dwight Water Tower. This rusty colossus protrudes over the main road and is the symbol for me that even the smallest city can have a bit of pride. I took a photo there while a delivery truck full of corn grains passed – a picture I would later call “typical Dwight”.

Between all this there is still Dwight Grain Elevator, an old brick building, which today serves as a museum for agricultural equipment. I saw an antique threshing bat there, which was almost as big as my suitcase, and had to laugh because I thought the farmers had a gym in their barn at that time.

So if you're looking for a place that doesn't advertise with excessive advertising promises, but is just honest, then these are Dwight Attractions That's right. I've found my favorite places here because I don't let myself be dazzled by shiny brochures, but rather I'd rather experience the real, light-scattered life in this little spot Illinois.