It's amazing what you can find when you do a little digging in the state archives. This is a great example. It's an original ticket from the inaugural trip of Quincy's 'Little Q' train from 1966.

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You can thank two organizations for this little gem (no Quincy pun intended). The Quincy Public Library shared this original ticket with the State of Illinois Digital Archives. See if this train ticket doesn't take you back if you're old enough to remember.

State of Illinois Digital Archives/Quincy Public Library for education purposes
State of Illinois Digital Archives/Quincy Public Library for education purposes
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The state of Illinois also shares some of the history behind this ticket:

Quinsippi Central Railway. Quinsippi Island Quincy, Illinois. Owned and Operated by Quincy Park Board. Adult Fare. One first class fare - non-refundable. Golden Spike. Inaugural Day -- Sept. 1, 1966. Also called Little Q Railroad. This was an amusement ride on Quissippi Island. This ran from 1967-1983. This was a plan to turn Quinsippi Island into a local recreation center and attractions.

There's a local Quincy Facebook group that shared dozens of vintage pictures from the 'Little Q' train era if you're interested. They noted that passengers "rode the scenic route from All America Park at Front St. (now called Bonansinga Drive) and Cedar St., across the Quinsippi Island Bridge, then south to the tip of Quinsippi Island".

How and why did it end? According to the Facebook group, the revenue generated by the 'Little Q' wasn't sufficient to pay for all the repairs it needed to continue.

It's been almost 40 years since the 'Little Q' rode through Quincy to Quinsippi Island, but for many the memories are still vivid.

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