Where Stories Move: Crossing County Lines in Southern Illinois

There are invisible lines, some more robust than others, throughout any given region and Southern Illinois is no exception. A bridge, a county line, a physical barrier... when we encounter a threshold we have a tendency to pause, or turn around entirely. These invisible and visible lines create a rhythm that supports or deters movement, the flow of funds and the pulse of a region.

In our time exploring the seventeen counties of southern illinois we regularly hear, often from those who have lived here their entire lives, that they have never visited or even heard of the many places we explore. The distance, the weather, the misunderstood area it resides, these are just a few of the ways residents and visitors miss out on much of the magic throughout southern illinois.

Having spent over fifteen years immersing ourselves in the entirety of the region we've noticed, arguably, every stereotype and incomplete reputation each community holds. Born of deeply nuanced history and riddled with inaccuracies and often incomplete descriptors, the southern illinois we've come to love incorporates them all and still leaves room for the stories untold and those yet to come.

Rural living, especially in southern illinois is often misunderstood and mindsets can be unintentionally self-limiting. The idea that there is nothing to do or see, nowhere to go or no places to explore is simply not true but a renaissance is taken afoot and a shift can be felt, in conversations, in headlines, and in community events.

Maps tell us where to go, and county lines shape budgets and intentions, but money is energetic, not fixed; it follows the rhythm of experience. And when we move with curiosity, we find that the ebb and flow of resources is not something to fear, it’s something to befriend and guide through exploration.