Sarah Palin Bus Tour drops by Reagan?s Hometown on Midwest Road Trip

After her stop at the Iowa State Fair during the GOP Straw Poll, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin took her recently relaunched "One Nation" bus tour to Ronald Reagan's hometown of Dixon, Ill.

Palin, along with husband Todd, daughter Piper, and niece McKinley, was greeted by a small crowd at the boyhood home of President Ronald Reagan in northern Illinois.

Local newspaper Sauk Valley reports that Palin and family toured the house as part of the small city's five-day festival celebrating the former president, who died in 2004 at the age of 93.

"I live down the street, and the neighbor told me that Sarah Palin's bus just pulled up, and we're Republicans and I thought we would just come on down and say hello," Dixon resident Anne Brousil told the Sauk Valley newspaper.

As the SarahPAC caravan (consisting of an SUV, minivan, and bus) drove through Illinois, passing cars would slow down to snap pictures out the window, and some even honked and waved, NBC News reports. Palin was greeted at every stop, including some of the hotels, by crowds of people wanting to take a photo with her or get an autograph.

The last stop on this leg of the tour was the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum in Springfield, IL.

Palin relaunched the "One Nation" bus tour with this announcement on her Sarah PAC Web site last Thursday:

"The heartland is perfect territory for more of the One Nation Tour as we put forth efforts to revitalize the fundamental restoration of America by highlighting our nation's heart, history and founding principles."

Like her last tour, Palin has kept the details of her itinerary a mystery, but has not been shy about staying in the media spotlight.

Though her intentions for the 2012 republican ticket remain uncertain, Palin has made sure to keep her name in the game.

She launched the first leg of the One Nation tour on Memorial Day weekend, following a path of historic American sites up the East Coast to New Hampshire on the day that Mitt Romney announced his candidacy in the state.

Then in June, she headed to Iowa to attend the premiere of her documentary "The Undefeated" as Michele Bachmann made her candidacy official there.

Palin was the center of attention again this past weekend in Iowa as Texas Gov. Rick Perry signaled his intentions regarding the 2012 election.

While the bus tour may seem an unconventional publicity stunt, others say it may be just the thing she needs.

According to Real Clear Politics:

"In spite of the celebrity profile that she has embraced since 2008, the unorthodox nature of the bus tour indicates that Palin recognizes that she would have to run a grass-roots campaign that removes some of her shine, in order to highlight her blue-collar persona."

Take a look at the promotional video below for Palin's latest tour: