Bishop Hill Museum

Bishop Hill was founded 1846 by Swedish immigrants in an attempt to create a utopian, communal society. They had followed Erik Jansson from Sweden to Illinois believing that his teachings came directly from God. They arrived too late in the year to plant crops and 98 people died the first winter but the settlement grew and became successful with 12,000 acres under cultivation and 20 commercial buildings erected. Jansson was murdered in 1850 by John Root, who was married to Jansson's cousin. She wanted to stay in the community, he wanted to leave, and Jansson sided with her. After the murder a board of seven trustees managed the community. Bad investments by one of the trustees led to an economical collapse which caused the community to dissolve in 1861. Today the population is only 113 but many of the original buildings are still standing and house shops, restaurants, and museums. 

Four buildings are owned by the State of Illinois plus there are other buildings open to the public to tour. There isn't good signage in the town and we wandered around looking for the main museum, not realizing that the historic exhibits are in the Steeple Building. Download this map before visiting. 

 

We eventually found the Bishop Hill Museum which has an exhibit of the artwork of Olof Krans. Twelve year old Olaf came to Bishop Hill in 1850 with his parents. He started painting memories of his childhood in 1896 while he was recovering from a fall. The docent was a wealth of information and filled us in on the town's history. We stayed so long talking with him that we missed the other buildings. 

The museum is accessible. 

The parking lot is large enough for any RV. Parking is available on the streets if you want to visit the rest of the town. Bishop Hill  41.1961, -90.11957