The eastern Illinois community of Watseka plans to spend the Fourth of July honoring the man who designed the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. Henry Bacon was born in rural Watseka in 1866. The Daily-Journal reports that an Illinois State Historical marker honoring him will be dedicated July 4 on the west grounds of Watseka's Old Courthouse Museum.
The Harold and Jean Miner Foundation paid for the marker. The Iroquois County farm couple's foundation was started to benefit students and communities of the area. A plaque about Bacon and his role in creating the Lincoln Memorial has hung in the Old Courthouse Museum for years. A historical writer from Woodridge launched the effort for a more substantial marker.