Wedged between the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers, the rural peninsula of Calhoun County is one of the best-kept secrets in the state of Illinois. Cut off from the rest of the “Land of Lincoln,” and connected to neighboring Missouri by ferry only, Calhoun County is a world of its own. A third of the state’s substantial peach crop is grown here on farms that have changed hands only a few times, if at all, since they were given out as land grants to veterans of the War of 1812; bypassing the summer farm stands, especially when the baseball-sized, plum-sweet tomatoes are in season, borders on criminal. A lucky few St. Louisians have weekend getaways here, too, alongside shacks and trailers that seem to accumulate debris like the Corps’ dams accumulate Mississippi mud.
From the end of the Winfield ferry access road, detour north to Batchtown, stopping at Friedel’s Grocery (618/396-2538) at 14 Main Street for a shake or malt as whim or muggy weather may demand. Farther south, in the town of Brussels (pop. 150), whose public phone booth is possibly the town’s sole civic improvement since the Coolidge administration, a handful of cafés and bars is evidence of its popularity with weekenders from St. Louis. The most popular haunt in Brussels is the venerable Wittmond Hotel (618/883-2345) across from the water tower and post office at the heart of Brussels. The dining room here serves delicious, all-you-can-eat, family-style meals (very popular on Sunday). They also rent rooms (around $50 a night), have a timeless bar, and an even more ancient-looking general store—complete with dusty old merchandise that looks like it dates back to when the enterprise opened in 1847.
Getting to and around Calhoun County is a bit of an adventure. The main access is from the southeast, across the Illinois River via the state-run, round-the-clock Brussels Ferry; there’s also a bridge at Hardin 14 miles upstream. From the northern St. Louis area, the privately operated Golden Eagle (618/883-2217) runs across the Mississippi River from a landing outside St. Charles to Golden Eagle, Illinois. Last but not least is the ferry across the Mississippi from Winfield, described above. Most of the ferries cease operation in the winter, but during summer they run more or less from dawn to midnight, sell local maps, and can offer basic visitor information. Road signs in Calhoun County are almost nonexistent, but just driving (or cycling!) around, getting lost and found, and lost and found again, is by far the best way to get a feel for this preserved-in-amber island in time.
