Golf in Benton

Benton is the Franklin County seat in the southern Illinois coalfield, a region whose fortunes rose and fell with underground mining across the twentieth century. The town carries a solid courthouse-square character, and Lake Moses — an impoundment adjacent to the country club — provides a recreational anchor that coal-country towns often lack. Benton sits roughly equidistant between I-57 to the east and the Big Muddy River bottoms to the west. The county's legacy includes a mix of old mining infrastructure and newer agricultural enterprise. Benton Country Club, approaching its centennial, reflects the civic stability that survived the coalfield's economic transitions.