A guided tour can be wonderful, whether it’s an architectural tour of a city or a historical tour of a neighborhood. Yet, there’s something equally as wonderful as trekking out on your own on a self-guided tour. You can set your own itinerary and move at your own pace, whether that’s the pace of a tortoise or a hare, maybe even both. If there’s something you find particularly fascinating, you can slow down and take a deeper dive.
With QC PastPort destinations, you can visit as many or as few destinations as you want. You can visit multiple destinations in a day, or you can spread out visits when you find yourself with the luxury of free time. There are no rules here, though we do have a few tips to make the most of your historical tour of QC PastPort destinations.
Use the map
We have a map on our website you can zoom in and out to find destinations to visit. Before you go out to try a new restaurant, go for a walk in one of the area parks, or visit one of your favorite locales, check out this map and add one or more of these locations to your travel plans. Each destination on this map will give you the chance to take a moment to travel in time through the rich history of our area.
Stand in the place where it happened
Use your imagination. When you visit a QC PastPort destination, look at the sign, read about the history, take a moment to think about how you’re standing in the very place history took place. You may be standing in a place where crowds gathered in the early days of aviation to watch aerial acrobatics in the sky. You may be standing in a more solemn place, where Dred Scott walked before he took his case to the Supreme Court. These moments in time are not merely blurbs for history books, they’re the events that shaped our community, our world.
See the world through your community.
The Quad Cities has a wonderful history of immigration. Visit Greenbush, built by Irish immigrants. The Floreciente neighborhood is a community of immigrants primarily from Mexico, who came to the West End of Moline after waves of Belgian and Swedish immigrants. The German American Heritage Center and Museum has lovely exhibits about German immigration, which started in the Quad Cities in the mid-1800s. The Swenson Swedish Immigration Research Center at Augustana College is a great place to begin learning about the immense impact Swedish immigrants have had on our community.
Share your love of history
Finally, share your curiosity and love of history with your community. Let friends and family know how they can stand in the place where it happened and have their own historical experience!