Illinois Route 123 (IL-123) is an east–west state highway in central

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, USA. long, it stretches from Historic Route 66 at Williamsville to

Illinois Route 125 Illinois Route 125 (IL-125) is a major highway in the central portion of the U.S. state of Illinois. Illinois 125 runs east from the concurrent U.S. Route 67 and Illinois Route 100 near Beardstown to Illinois Route 97 in Farmingdale, west of S ...

near Pleasant Plains.

Route description

All of IL-123's route is contained within Sangamon and

Menard Menard may refer to: Places Canada *Menard River, a tributary of the Wawagosic River in Quebec, Canada United States * Menard County, Illinois ** Menard, Illinois * Menard County, Texas ** Menard, Texas * Menard–Hodges site, archaeological s ...

counties. Major towns located on or adjacent to IL-123 include

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

, Petersburg, and Williamsville. New Salem, the home of

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

in the 1830s, has been reconstructed as Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site near Petersburg on IL-123.

History

SBI Route 123 was what Illinois 123 is now, plus a road from Ashland south to

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

Interstate 72 Interstate 72 (I-72) is an Interstate Highway in the midwestern United States. Its western terminus is in Hannibal, Missouri, at an intersection with U.S. Route 61 (US 61); its eastern terminus is at Country Fair Drive in Champai ...

U.S. Route 36 U.S. Route 36 (US 36) is an east–west United States highway that travels approximately from Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado to Uhrichsville, Ohio. The highway's western terminus is at Deer Ridge Junction, an intersection i ...

. In 1999, Illinois 123 was truncated on its southern end to Illinois 125. In October 2003, Illinois 123 was extended east to Williamsville, replacing some of

Illinois Route 124 Illinois Route 124 (IL 124) is a state route in central Illinois. It has the distinction of being marked as an east–west route,Sarjeant, CharlesIllinois Highway Ends - Illinois 124. Retrieved May 10, 2006. but IL 124 runs entirely north&nda ...

in the process as well as all of Sangamon County Route 11.

Major intersections

References

{{reflist 123 Transportation in Sangamon County, Illinois Transportation in Menard County, Illinois