Did Lincoln sleep in Belleville? Local historian believes he has found the answer

It was an “aha” moment for Jack LeChien.

The Belleville historian and co-chairman of the Gustave Koerner House Restoration committee had heard people speculate for decades on whether Abraham Lincoln had slept in the city during his 1856 visit and, if so, where.

Then recently, LeChien stumbled on a 1936 column in the Belleville Daily News-Democrat, now the BND, which seemed to provide evidence that the future U.S. president did spend the night at the Scheel home in the 200 block of South Illinois Street, where the Downtown Belleville YMCA parking lot is today.

The column was written by Emilie Heber, a Scheel family friend who grew up in the neighborhood.

“Is it completely 100% accurate in every detail? Well, we don’t know because we weren’t there, and we have so few sources,” LeChien said. “But to me, there’s enough detail there, and it’s written by a schoolteacher (and published in a newspaper), so that gives it some credibility.”