Bailey Falls

Bailey Falls is a 20-foot block in Illinois, on Bailey Creek.

It's fullest after rain, and flow can drop off during dry spells — plan around recent weather.

Plungeworthy rates Bailey Falls 6.6/10 — worth a detour. The score weighs its scale, how confidently it's mapped, and its character.

Know what this listing is: Bailey Falls probably isn't a waterfall you can visit — and may never have been much of one. The federal place-name database classifies this location as a historical populated place — a vanished settlement, not a natural feature — and its own map note says 'this location is no longer visible.'

The one descriptive account we found says Bailey Creek 'carried only a small amount of water, not nearly enough to erode away the limestone' — a polite way of saying the falls was always more name than water. The database coordinate also sits 850 meters from the official one.

We keep the page so the record is straight: no directions, because there's nothing confirmed to direct you to. The real waterfalls of this valley are at Matthiessen and Starved Rock, minutes away.

Not applicable.