There's a strange town near Alton I suggest you guys look into. It's called Elsah, IL. It has a strong Christian Science community oddly enough, and if you were into seeing it, you would be surprised by its historical architecture, in the vicinity of a River Bluff Valley. The first time I ran into it I was in awe. It looked like a Christmas Card. An incredibly old church and school house sit in the center, surrounded by some very colonial looking architecture and homes.
Elsah is awesome, and the Principia's campus is widely considered one of the most beautiful in the country (it's a registered National Historic Landmark).