Petersburg was established while Lincoln was the postmaster of nearby New Salem.  In 1836, Deputy Surveyor Abraham Lincoln plotted the city of Petersburg map.  Over the years, New Salem was supplanted by Petersburg as the city of commerce and as county seat for Menard County. Most of the New Salem residents moved to Petersburg.  Lincoln’s purported first love, Ann Rutledge, is buried in Petersburg.  The people of Petersburg’s Chautauqua Society reconstructed New Salem village in 1920.  New Salem village was donated to the State of Illinois in the 1930’s.

Early Maple Crest

The foundation of Maple Crest was built by a man named Fulton, but not completed by him.  For a number of years only the foundation existed, and it was reputed to be a "courting place", thus became known as Fulton's Folly.

Fifteen-year-old Elijah Gault built Maple Crest in 1865 - probably with the architectural assistance of his later business partner, Detrich Fischer.   He came to Petersburg after the death of his famous father, the Rev. Thomas A. Gault of nearby Farmington Presbyterian Church.

Gault sold the house a few years later to William Meyer, a native of Hanover, Germany.  The house was then sold to Mr. & Mrs. E. W. Shipley who lived here with their son and two daughters.  The Shipley's sold this 12-room Victorian house in 1924 to Mr. & Mrs.  Milo Franklin Vogt.  The Vogt's had two sons, Milo Henderson Vogt and Stephen Berry Vogt.   Two exterior changes were made during this time, a cupola was removed from the roof and a large family room was built in the rear.  The kitchen was also remodeled and appeared in a national magazine. The Vogt family lived in the house until 1998.

The exterior of the house was used in the filming of "The Awakening Land", a television movie made back in 1978 starring Elizabeth Montgomery, Jane Seymour and Hal Holbrook. For interior shots of the same house, the film makers used the Governor's mansion in Springfield. Illinois. Visit the Governor's Mansion site for tour days and times.

Maple Crest is listed as "Gault House" on the driving "Tour of the Older Section of Petersburg Illinois", a free map published by the Petersburg Chamber of Commerce.  To obtain a free map, visit the Menard County Historical Museum or one of the local businesses on the Courthouse Square.