Exciting news for baseball fans in Illinois and across the country! The Women’s Professional Baseball League plans to play its inaugural season in Springfield. Four teams from major cities across the U.S. – New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Boston – will be playing their 2026 season at Springfield’s very own Robin Roberts Stadium.

Illinois has played a central role in women’s baseball since the sport’s earliest days. Springfield’s connection goes back 150 years. In 1875, two women’s baseball clubs, the Blondes and the Brunettes, played a ticketed game, becoming one of the first women’s baseball events to have paying customers where players were paid.

The popularity of women’s baseball peaked in the 1940s and 1950s when Phillip Wrigley, an executive of the Chicago Cubs, created the most famous pro women’s baseball league in 1943 – the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Springfield was home to the Sallies, one of the professional teams that was part of the league. Other Illinois cities, including Rockford, Chicago and Peoria had their own professional teams as well. Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin had multiple professional teams as well. However, despite the league’s popularity, it shut down in 1954.

Now after a 70-year gap, women’s pro baseball returns making an extremely anticipated debut. The Women’s Professional Baseball League is stepping in to offer players a professional platform, televised competition and a new generation of role models for girls who dream of playing baseball at the highest level.

Springfield hosting the league’s first season is a continuation of the story Illinois helped start over a century ago. Stay up-to-date on the WPBL by visiting their website. WPBL games will start in August 2026 with the season running through September.

Illinois is no stranger to deer crossings, but did you know that twice a year, one of the largest snake migrations in the United States takes place in Illinois as well?  For two months in spring and fall every year, Forest Road 345, more commonly known as ‘Snake Road’ is shut down for a nearly three mile stretch to allow up to 23 species of snakes to migrate between their winter habitat in the forest’s limestone bluffs and their summer base at LaRue Swamp.

Like many wildlife species, snakes face a dangerous obstacle when crossing trafficked roads. Snakes are particularly vulnerable because of their cold-blooded nature. Black asphalt is good at holding on to heat from the sun, and in the cooler early morning and twilight hours, snakes often like to lie out and bask in the warmth, rather than dart across the road quickly like other animals. This can have a deadly impact on snake populations; researchers estimate that up to 25% of all snakes are killed by drivers.

Located in Central Illinois, Morton is a small town with a big claim to fame: it is the Pumpkin Capital of the World. Known for its pumpkin patches, festivals and rich agricultural history, Morton has earned its title serving as the headquarters of the world’s largest pumpkin processing company – Libby’s.

Each year, Morton produces more pumpkins than any other place in the U.S. The town’s fields and surrounding areas yield millions of pumpkins, providing 95% of the canned pumpkin in the country and 85% of the canned pumpkin worldwide. Libby’s has been a major player in Morton’s identity since the 1970s when the factory began exclusively processing pumpkins.

In the heart of West‑Central Illinois, the town of Monmouth prides itself on being the “Prime Beef Center of the World,” and its annual Warren County Prime Beef Festival stands as a testament to that claim. This community celebration brings together generations of cattle producers, local families and visitors to recognize the foundational role of agriculture in the area’s past, present and future.

If you are looking to soak in the last days of summer, there is nothing quite like a trip to a sunflower field – and Illinois has some of the best spots in the Midwest to visit. Stretching across acres of farmland, these radiant blooms typically reach their peak between late July and early September, offering the perfect backdrop for family outings, photo sessions, or a peaceful day in nature.

One of the most popular destinations is Richardson Farm in Spring Grove. While known for its corn maze that spans nearly 10 miles of trail, the farm explodes in color come late summer with 13 acres worth of sunflowers in bloom. Guests are invited to walk the fields, take photos, and even cut a few stems to bring home.