Things to Do in Edwardsville, IL: A Free Route 66 Station That Was a Dentist's Office
Revised November 5, 2026
What are some free things to do in Edwardsville, Illinois?
Start at the West End Service Station, a free Route 66 interpretive center at 620 St. Louis Street, open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. Then see the U.S. Navy A-7E Corsair II jet at Edwardsville Township Community Park, stand in Hotz Park, at .02 acres one of the smallest parks in the United States, and catch the Municipal Band’s free Thursday concerts in City Park.
Keep reading ↓Somebody leaned back in a dentist’s chair on St. Louis Street, stared at the ceiling and waited for the drill. Under the same roof, a generation earlier, travelers on Route 66 had pulled in for gas, tires and a quick look under the hood.
Same building. Two very different kinds of service.
The brick building at 620 St. Louis Street served as a fuel stop and service center for Route 66 traffic until the highway bypassed the town. For the next 55 years it shifted to dentistry. Then the city partnered with the Great Rivers and Routes Tourism Bureau to buy and restore it, and today the West End Service Station is a Route 66 interpretive center full of stories, photos and souvenirs. Admission is free. That’s the line to repeat on the drive home: the Route 66 gas station that spent half a century as a dentist’s office, and now lets you in for nothing.
Edwardsville is full of turns like that, a short drive across the river from St. Louis. Here’s how to fill a free afternoon with them, plus where to fish from the bank, where to go when it rains and what grown-ups do after dark.
What are some free things to do in Edwardsville, Illinois?
Start at the West End Service Station, a free Route 66 interpretive center at 620 St. Louis Street, open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. Then see the U.S. Navy A-7E Corsair II jet at Edwardsville Township Community Park, stand in Hotz Park, at .02 acres one of the smallest parks in the United States, and catch the Municipal Band’s free Thursday concerts in City Park.
Park smart at the station. The spaces right next to it are available only on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, because the lot belongs to a neighboring business. Three spaces sit across the street at Hadley House, 708 St. Louis Street, and there’s plenty of parking near West and Schwarz streets, next to the Route 66 shield monument. The station even has a bike rack if you rode in.
Then walk a few blocks to the strangest park you’ll ever stand in. Hotz Park, at the corner of St. Louis and Randle streets, is .02 acres. The city calls it one of the smallest parks in the United States, and it’s mostly one huge stone with a bronze plaque for the five governors who lived in Edwardsville: Edward Coles, Ninian Edwards, John Reynolds, Thomas Ford and Charles Deneen. Put a hand on the cool bronze and count them off. It takes about a minute, and kids love that a whole park fits in one photo.
Want the governor in person? City Plaza, at St. Louis Street and West Vandalia Street, has a fountain, benches and a statue of former Illinois Governor Ninian Edwards, the city’s namesake, with a lithograph detailing his policies and actions. Stand next to him for the photo.
A short walk up Randle, at No. 535, Lusk Memorial Park is the site of the city’s oldest cemetery, now a shady, passive park of more than 2.8 acres with benches, memorial plaques and wrought iron fencing at the main entrance. The remains of several original headstones are still visible near the gate. Go slow. It’s quiet enough to hear the leaves.
Is there really a Navy jet in a park?
There is, and it’s the reason locals call the place Airplane Park. Edwardsville Township Community Park, at 6368 Center Grove Road, has had a U.S. Navy A-7E Corsair II on display for more than twenty years. The township is working with community volunteers and the Edwardsville Community Foundation to restore it, and it says the aircraft preserves a piece of Naval Aviation history in honor of the men and women who serve.
Stand under the wing and the scale lands on you. This is a real attack jet, sharp-nosed and low to the ground, parked next to the picnic shelters. The park itself has been open to the public for more than four decades, and its later additions include a larger playground, tennis courts and a soccer field. Hours change with the seasons, so check the township’s posted hours before you go, and park only in marked spots.
When does the Municipal Band play in City Park?
Thursday nights in summer. The Edwardsville Municipal Band is a community tradition that dates back to the 1880s, and the city calls it a summer staple in City Park, with free weekly performances on the Cleaon Etzkorn Bandstand, weather permitting. The Thursday concerts begin at 7:30 p.m.
Bring a lawn chair and get there while the light is still gold through the shade trees. City Park sits on 2.09 acres downtown at 101 South Buchanan Street, with the public library, benches and a fountain, so you can walk the kids around the fountain while the band tunes. When the first brass chord hits, half the lawn goes quiet and the other half starts tapping a foot.
The bandstand stays busy on other nights, too. The city lists it as the focal point for Arts in the Park activities, the Edwardsville Route 66 Festival, Opera Edwardsville performances, the Edwardsville Symphony and the summer Concerts in the Park series. The band also marches in several parades each year and plays a holiday show at the Wildey Theatre. Follow its Facebook page for the current schedule.
Where can you fish in Edwardsville without a boat?
Here are the easy ones. Neither needs a boat, a launch or a scramble down a muddy bank.
Leclaire Park, at 900 Hale Avenue, spreads across 5.8 acres inside the historic Leclaire neighborhood. A sidewalk encircles the park and its 2-acre lake, which the city says is great for fishing, and a lighted waterfall fountain splashes in the middle. Cast from the sidewalk edge with the fountain hissing behind your bobber. There are three playground areas and a historic bandstand gazebo for the ones who won’t sit still.
Joe Glik Park, at 710 East Lake Drive near Dunlap Lake, covers more than 42 acres and has two stocked fishing lakes with a concrete fishing deck, the easy pick for small kids or anyone who’d rather stand on something solid. It also has 2,500 feet of walking, biking and skating trails and a fenced, shaded off-leash dog park, so the dog can ride along. City parks are open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. unless otherwise noted.
Before you cast, check the Illinois Department of Natural Resources’ current fishing license rules, which depend on your age and residency.
Want more water than two city lakes? Here are the best fishing spots in St. Louis on the Missouri side.
What is there to do in Edwardsville on a rainy day?
Go back two centuries. The 1820 Col. Benjamin Stephenson House is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is considered the oldest brick home in Madison County. Its own history puts it at the center of how Edwardsville, the third oldest city in Illinois, grew into a seat of government and commerce. Walk in out of the rain and you’re standing inside the oldest brick home in the county.
Call before you drive. The house recommends reservations at 618-692-1818, says it is short-staffed, and does not run tours after 2 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children 6 to 12, and children five and under get in free.
The West End Service Station from the free list works in the rain, too, since it’s indoors and costs nothing. With small kids, head to the historic Leclaire Academy building, a more than century-old school that now houses the Edwardsville Children’s Museum.
What to do in Edwardsville, IL for adults?
Make it a night, not an errand. Start downtown at the historic Wildey Theatre, which the city also rents out for events. Its calendar runs concerts, tribute shows and a Wildey $3 Movie Tuesday series of classic films. Sitting in a dark old theater with a three-dollar ticket in your pocket feels like a small crime, the good kind.
Here’s the trivia that wins the table. The end credits of Stingray, a car-chase movie, thank the Wildey Theatre in Edwardsville, Illinois, along with the city’s police and fire departments. Ask the bartender down the street if they’ve seen it.
Then pair the Thursday band with a walk downtown and a drink after. Wear comfortable shoes, bring a light jacket for when the sun drops, and leave the evening open, because these nights tend to run long. For dinner first, our guide to where to eat in Edwardsville lines up the tables.
One free Edwardsville afternoon, in order: the West End Service Station, the five governors at Hotz Park, the jet at Township Park, then a lawn chair at the City Park bandstand on a summer Thursday. Dinner first? See where to eat in Edwardsville.
If you run the shop, the bar or the cafe on the walk between the station and the bandstand, these visitors are searching for their next stop on their phones right now. Put your business where they look and get more customers from the people already downtown.
Where else is worth going near Edwardsville?
Next door, our guide covers things to do at Miner Park in Glen Carbon, caboose included. Down the road, the parks in Collinsville make an easy second stop, and if a car movie puts you in a drive-in mood, see Belleville’s Skyview Drive-In. Stringing river towns together? Our page on Grafton Ferry hours and fares covers the crossing that takes you home the long, pretty way.
In December, look up the drive-through Christmas lights in Alton, and our roundup of the best Christmas lights in St. Louis covers the Missouri side. For shops and services in town, keep our Edwardsville city guide handy, and the rest of the region is mapped in our complete local guide to things to do in St. Louis by town.
Next time somebody says there’s nothing across the river but a campus and a highway, tell them about the gas station that turned into a dentist’s office. Then take them there.
Frequently asked questions
What is Edwardsville, Illinois known for?
The Stephenson House history calls Edwardsville the third oldest city in Illinois, and five Illinois governors lived here, a fact honored by the bronze plaque in Hotz Park. It’s also a Route 66 town, with the restored West End Service Station on St. Louis Street, and home to the 1820 Stephenson House, the oldest brick home in Madison County.
What to do in Edwardsville, IL for adults?
Catch a $3 Movie Tuesday or a concert at the Wildey Theatre, take a lawn chair to the Municipal Band’s free Thursday show in City Park at 7:30 p.m., and book a tour of the 1820 Stephenson House by calling 618-692-1818. Finish with dinner downtown.
What’s going on in Edwardsville this weekend?
Check the City of Edwardsville’s online calendar and the Wildey Theatre’s event listings, and follow the Municipal Band’s Facebook page. In summer, Thursday night belongs to the band in City Park. The West End Service Station is open Wednesday through Sunday, so it’s always a weekend option.
How do you find free local events?
Go to the source. In Edwardsville that means the city’s online calendar, the Municipal Band’s Facebook page and the Wildey Theatre’s event page. Big event sites tend to lag, and they miss small things like a free band concert or a museum talk.
What’s the etiquette for using paved bike trails?
Keep right, pass on the left, and call out “on your left” or ring a bell before you go by. Slow down around walkers and runners, ride single file when someone is coming toward you, keep dogs on a short leash, stop at road crossings, and pull all the way off the path when you take a break.
What are some fun things to do in Edwardsville?
See the Navy A-7E Corsair II jet at Township Park, fish the lakes at Joe Glik Park and Leclaire Park, tour the free West End Service Station on Route 66, stand in tiny Hotz Park, and take small kids to the Edwardsville Children’s Museum in the old Leclaire Academy building. On a summer Thursday, finish with the Municipal Band in City Park.
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