Edwardsville and Glen Carbon Real Estate Chat: Kristina Pratt, REALTOR® - GoshenRealtyGroup.com (St. Louis' Illinois Suburbs - RE/MAX Preferred Partners)

Known for its steel manufacturing past and present, this hard-working community lies in the rich American Bottoms land adjacent to the Mississippi River in Madison County.

Originally known as Six Mile Prairie, for its position six miles from St. Louis, the city is a quick commute from downtown St. Louis thanks to the reopening of the McKinley Bridge over the Mississippi.

Beautiful Wilson Park with its ice arena, swimming facilities, walking paths and gardens is the centerpiece of Granite City.

Get information on Granite City Schools.
Visit the city web site.

Mining heritage, Italian culture, a regional convention center and much more highlight the city of Collinsville.

Located just 10 miles from downtown St. Louis, the Gateway Arch and skyline are visible from the Collinsville bluffs. Commuters will enjoy the easy access to I-55/70.

Collinsville's Gateway Convention Center offers a variety of popular shows and events held throughout the year. An aquatic center, the Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site (a United Nations World Heritage Site) and the Fairmount Park thoroughbred race track are among the area's attractions.

The first log cabin was built in the area in 1810. Several years later the Collins family moved to town and lent their name to the settlement. The first coal mine opened in 1870 and by the 1920s nearly one-third of the town's residents, many of whom were Italian immigrants, were miners.

Collinsville celebrates its Italian heritage each year with the Italian Fest and it marks its position in Madison County -- the Horseradish Capital of the World -- with the annual International Horseradish Festival.  In another unusual claim to fame, Collinsville is home to the World's Largest Catsup Bottle. 

Click here for the Collinsville city web site.
Learn more about Collinsville schools.

German farm families were the first non-native settlers in the area of Pleasant Ridge, now known as the village of Maryville.

Located between Glen Carbon and Collinsville, Maryville, Illinois -- like its neighbors -- also was home to coal mines in the early part of thr 20th century.

Today Maryville offers buyers a variety of housing options, including several new subdivisions. Commuters will find easy access to I-55/70 and I-270.

Historic structures that served the village's early farmers and miners are still in use today and car cruisers from near and far know Maryville for Bobby's Frozen Custard -- a 50's-style stop located along State Hwy. 159.

Other Maryville amenities include the 59-acre Drost Park, Stonebridge Golf Course and Oliver C. Anderson Hospital.

Maryville is part of the Collinsville School District.
Click here to see the Village web site.

As you might guess from this village's name, Glen Carbon was home to a thriving coal mining industry in the early part of the 20th century.

Before that, the region was nicknamed the "Land of Goshen" after the lush Biblical paradise. In 1801, Col. Samuel Judy was granted 100 acres of land, becoming the first non-native settler in Madison County.  Judy later served in Illinois' first legislature, which convened in Kaskaskia, Illinois. 

When Madison County was officially organized in 1812, its border reached all the way to Canada and Judy was one of the new county's first commissioners. The village of Glen Carbon was organized in 1892.

If you're visiting or moving to the Land of Goshen today, you'll find attractions including the 1853 Yanda log cabin, the Glen Carbon Centennial Library, the Heritage Museum, miles of biking and  hiking trails and the Glen Carbon covered bridge.

New shopping and dining options, coupled with convenient Interstate access, make Glen Carbon a convenient place to call home.

Glen Carbon is part of the Edwardsville School District.
Visit the Village web site.

The seat of Madison County Government and the home of Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville, this charming city was first settled in 1805. 

Edwardsville, named for Ninian Edwards, the first governor of the Illinois Territory, was established in 1809. Five Illinois governors came from Edwardsville. In addition to Edwards, they were Edward Coles, John Reynolds, Thomas Ford and Charles Deneen.

Visitors and residents enjoy many attractions including the Children's Museum, the Madison County Historical Society, the St. Louis Street Historic District, the LeClaire Historic District, the Col. Benjamin Stephenson House and an abundance of hiking and biking trails.

Edwardsville is located on a popular stretch of historic Old Route 66. Known as The Mother Road, the mythic highway stretches from its starting point in Chicago to the Pacific Ocean in Santa Monica, California.

Edwardsville offers a lively downtown area surrounding the county courthouse and many shopping and dining opportunities.

Learn more about Edwardsville's schools.
Link to the Edwardsville City web site.

Madison County, Illinois is a vibrant part of the greater St. Louis metropolitan area. 

From its formation in 1812, the population of the county named for U.S. President James Madison has grown to more than 260,000.  In its earliest days, Madison County stretched to the northern border of Illinois and to the Wabash River to the east. The Mississippi River marked the western boundary. The county's current borders were set in 1843, still stretching from the mighty river to the west, across fertile farmland to the top of the river bluffs and beyond.

Madison County offers its residents a quality of life that is hard to find today, including stable communities, neighbors who know one another and all the economic and social benefits of living in a major metro area. The County seat is located in Edwardsville.

Learn more about the county at www.co.madison.il.us.

The mayors of Edwardsville and Glen Carbon -- Gary Niebur and Rob Jackstadt respectively -- are pleased with the area's growth over the past year.

At the recent State of Glen-Ed meeting, both pointed to the Edwardsville Crossing shopping center (which stradles the border between the two towns) as the centerpiece of their entertwined cities' commercial growth.

The center brought in $580,000 in property taxes and $930,000 in sales taxes in 2007, despite being unfinished. Shoe Carnival, Old Navy and Starbucks are among the businesses still under construction and a number of outlots have yet to be developed.

Among the retailers already operating at the center are Best Buy, Borders, Petco, Michaels, Dierberg's, 54th St. Grill, St. Louis Bread Company, Buffalo Wild Wings and Ashley Home Furniture.

If you travel through the Madison County village of Glen Carbon, you've probably noticed that Glen Crossing Road is closed at State Rt. 159. The convenient cross-town link went under construction in early February. It's being rebuilt from 159 to just east of Waterford Lane.

Area residents will be pleased to see new pavement, curbs, gutters, storm sewers and sidewalks when the project is finished. Village public works officials note that the work will be performed in seven stages and should be finished by the end of August 2008. For more information on Glen Crossing Road or other public works projects, visit the Glen Carbon web site.

Red'z Rib Shack, Maryville's answer to Barbecue Heaven, is now closed.

The shack, located at the corner of Il 159 and 162, is being removed to make way for a new Walgreens. That's right, fans. No more megas, pork steaks, tacos or pizza for a while. Keep track of the Red'z gang to see where you can get their Q at special events or to watch for their next location, by clicking on http://www.redzribshack.com/.

Nancy has created the new web site as a community service to give Red'z customers a virtual gathering place while the restaurant is temporarily unavailable. You can leave comments, send pictures and shed a tear or two over the old menu.

Troy, Illinois will be hosting it's annual city-wide garage sale this weekend on Saturday June 14th.  For a  more information visit troycoc.com

This is a great opportunity to hit a lot of sales at one time.  Make sure and get there early to get your hands on the good stuff.

Maps are available online at TroyCOC.com and a list of addresses and items can be found here as well.

The weather should cooperate, with a high in the mid-80s and only a chance at a spot storm.