PEORIA MAGAZINE June 2023

H O M E T O W N

MAKING THE MOST OF THINGS IN MACKINAW It may be “on the way to nowhere” but it’s well worth the trip

BY SCOTT FISHEL PHOTOS BY RON JOHNSON

M ackinaw is not the smallest of small towns in Tazewell County. But as small towns go, this village of 1,800 plus is an exception to many of the small town rules. While some towns this size have lost their local schools, grocery stores, restaurants and other core businesses, Mackinaw has all of those and other amenities including a pharmacy, manufacturing, a fish and wildlife area and a “suburb.” In fact, while no one was watching, Mackinaw seems to have transformed itself from a quiet farm community with a rich past to a destination for shoppers, diners and visitors from across the region. It’s all rolled into a friendly, welcoming place that even a dyed-in-the-wool Mackinaw resident and business owner like Beth Wiegand admits is “on the way to nowhere.” And yet plenty of people are finding their way to Mackinaw’s unique charms. NEARLY 200 YEARS IN THE MAKING Mackinaw goes back to 1827 when the first Tazewell County Courthouse, basically a log cabin, stood not far from the current Village Hall. Records show

that Mackinaw was the proposed name for the entire county until outside political factions forced a change. By 1831, county government had moved west to Tremont, and then on down the road to Pekin. It is generally agreed that the town takes its name from Chief Mackina or Mackinac of the Kickapoo tribe of natives. Some say it means “little chief” (hence the name of school mascots). Others say it means “turtle” (Go Fighting Turtles!). Just north of town is the Mackinaw River, once called the Michilimackinac, which empties into the Illinois River south of Pekin. A time capsule from 1977 rests beneath a marker in Veteran’s Park, waiting to be opened at the bicentennial in 2027. Like any Midwestern town of the 19th and early 20th centuries, Mackinaw once had every imaginable type of business, from grist mills and hotels to blacksmiths, general stores and saloons. An anchor of today’s business commu nity is the Mackinaw IGA — a steadfast survivor amid the Walmarts and big box retailers that have weeded out so many local merchants. Owner Brett COMMITTED TO THE COMMUNITY

Zehr has kept his market strong and vital for 29 years, surviving recessions, demographic changes, a pandemic and a devastating 2008 fire. To anyone else, the fire might have been a fatal blow. But the now 62-year old Mackinaw native rebuilt and was back in business within a year.

Brett Zehr, owner of Mackinaw IGA

“I knew that if I didn’t rebuild no one was going to put a new store in a small community like Mackinaw,” Zehr said. “I can’t buy stuff as cheap as what Walmart sells it for,” Zehr admits. “It’s impossible to compete with them” on that level. He said residents shop the IGA for convenience and its “friendly, helpful” employees.

54 JUNE 2023 PEORIA MAGAZINE