Welcome to the Macktown Forest Preserve Historic District!
This is a virtual geocache, there is no physical container to find or logbook to sign. All you need is the information found on-site at the coordinates.
Before you, at the marked coordinates, stands one of northern Illinois's oldest pioneer settlements, founded at the confluence of the Rock and Pecatonica rivers by Stephen Mack Jr. The historical district is connected to a golf course also located within the forest preserve. I love the beautiful location here as well as seeing the preservation of very intriguing local history, including the Mack family home and the original 1846 limestone Whitman Trading Post. There are informational posts spread throughout the historical preserve, which I invite you to explore at your leisure. On certain Sundays (as well other potential times), Macktown Living History puts on educational events which I highly recommend as a good excuse to come visit this cache, as it will make your visit a lot more fun. The people there are very passionate about this town's local history as well as preserving it for generations to enjoy. I hope you enjoy this walk through history.
Click here for more information from the Macktown Forest Preserve website and event schedule.
When finding this virtual cache, please observe the park rules. The Historic District is open to the public for free (although events may be paid) and closes at sunset.
To mark this cache as found, you must answer the following questions. The answers can be found at the corresponding numbered virtual stage. There are 9 stages in total, plus a tenth bonus stage which is not required to complete this virtual cache. It should take you about twenty minutes to half an hour to complete (unless you rush, maybe, but why would you want to do that?). "Found it" logs made without sending in the answers will be deleted.
As an optional bonus stage, please take a picture of yourself on location or something here you found interesting, especially if there was an event going on at the time of your visit, and share it in your log. Please do not upload any pictures that would spoiler any of the answers.
1. By the late 1890s, the area you're standing in became known as Macktown before it was eventually renamed Rockton. What was its original name?
2. Which cardinal direction of the medicine garden contains the cardinal flower?
3. From what period of Native American history were a great number of artifacts found in the excavation of the Whitman Trading Post?
4. How much did William Shores sell his property for?
5. When did Erastus' family move onto their 80-acre farm, which still operates to this day?
6. Which member of the Mack family may not actually be buried at this site?
7. What is the old term for for straw and pine needles used to plant and weed the garden?
8. On what floor could you find Stephen Mack's own original signature?
9. What was the occupation of the man whose family lived in the tavern after the Hayes moved out?
Any logs made without sending in answers or those with spoilers will be deleted. Do not post your answers in your log. Send your answers to me privately via the Message Center.
Congrats to DelicateFlower and Tim for being FTF!
Virtual Rewards 3.0 - 2022-2023
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between March 1, 2022 and March 1, 2023. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 3.0 on the Geocaching Blog.