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A Step Back in Time

Imagine being able to escape the bustle of the here and now and take a walk back in time, immersing yourself in:

• the untouched beauty of the Driftless;
• the region’s earliest native settlements;
• the hurly-burly of the first trading post on the Fevre River;
• the mines, foundries, breweries, and farms that fed life along the river;
• the Grant family’s leather shop and Ulysses’ path to the presidency; and
• a bustling main Street alive with shops, carriage traffic, and social and political life.

The city of Galena is a living showcase of a prosperous 19th century Midwestern town. Today, Galena is one of the country’s most historically significant, culturally vibrant, and scenically breathtaking places. Carved into a steep, rocky hillside in the early 19th century, Galena’s historic downtown offers a glimpse of the region’s past as an economic boomtown, larger than Chicago in the 1830s.

For almost 83 years the Galena-Jo Daviess County Historical Society has been a trusted and prudent steward of Galena’s vibrant history and culture. Galena’s past is proudly on display at the Galena & U.S. Grant Museum on Bench Street.