 The story of Broadwell begins with James Latham, who, after settling
at Elkhart Hill, made the first government land entry in what is now
Broadwell Township, in 1825.The coming of the railroad to Logan
County made Broadwell more than just a few settlers. In 1856 the
town of Broadwell was laid out as a grain station on the Alton &
Sangamon Railroad (now part of the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad).
A lot of things have changed since then, but the continued strength
of the community lives on.
When the Pig Hip Restaurant originally opened in Broadwell in
1937, it was actually named the Harbor Inn. The Pig Hip ham
sandwich, served with a secret sauce of owner Ernie Edwards' making,
became an instant hit. In 1990 the restaurant was turned into a
museum, and Ernie still enjoyed showing off the Route 66
memorabilia. Tragically, the museum was recently destroyed by fire.
Luckily, no one was harmed in the blaze, though many of the Route 66
items were lost.
As for the sesquicentennial events, the festivities will be at
the Route 66 Park in Broadwell (the Pig Hip site). The feature
ceremony will be on Sunday at 2 p.m. at the park. Presentations will
be made to the village president, Warren Bradley, and village
trustees, as well as Ernie Edwards. Speakers for the event will be
state Sen. Larry Bomke, state Rep. Rich Brauer and Patty Ambrose
from the Illinois Route 66 Heritage Project. Come share Ernie's
40-pound birthday cake and the Pig Hip sandwiches he's whipping up
for the occasion.
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 From 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday there will be
townwide garage sales, as well as the Logan County Route 66 Garage
Sale featuring several vendors at the Route 66 Park.
The Route 66 Association will be cruising through Broadwell
around 4 p.m. on Saturday with their "I Heard Tell" tour.
The Broadwell Christian Church will have an open house both days
from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. This historic church has been in Broadwell
since the town's inception 150 years ago, and there's more
information in a booklet available at the church. Throughout the
weekend, the church will collect items (nonperishables only) for
their food pantry. Sunday morning the church will host Sunday school
at 9, followed by a 10 o'clock worship service. Dan Wagner will be
leading the congregation. On Sunday evening at 6:30 there will be a
hymn sing along with gospel pianist Marcy Brooks. Come and enjoy
singing all the old hymns in a grand old church.
For more information, contact the Abraham Lincoln Tourism Bureau
of Logan County at 217-732-8687 or visit
www.abe66.com.
[Text from news release received from
Abraham Lincoln Tourism
Bureau of Logan County]
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