Galesburg's Railroad Days goes through Sunday: Here's what's new and what you need to know
GALESBURG — Galesburg’s 44th annual Railroad Days begins this Thursday, June 23. Here’s everything you need to know about what’s new this year, as well as where and when you can find it all.
Chew Chew & Brew Block Party
The Railroad Days carnival will be open in the Public Square from 6-10 p.m. on Thursday and Friday, 1-10 p.m. on Saturday and 1-5 p.m. on Sunday.
A mega wristband to ride the attractions all four days without tickets costs $60 and is only available on Thursday and Friday. A daily wristband is available each day for $30.
But there will be a new Chew Chew & Brew Block Party kick off event from 5-10 p.m. on Friday in Park Plaza.
The block party, which costs $5 to enter, will feature pop-up tents serving special menu items and cocktails from local restaurants Coney Island, Iron Spike, 156 East, Cherry Street Restaurant & Bar and The Bar 65.
The block party will also provide games and kids activities from 5-7 p.m. with the Galesburg Parks and Recreation’s mobile playground. Music will be provided by a local DJ from 5:30-7 p.m. and the band Midwest Hype will perform at 7:30 p.m.
The entrance fee, food and drinks are cash only. Kids under age 8 get in free.
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Semi Truck Cruise-In
People will be able to check out an array of semi-truck cabs parked on Main Street from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday.
Special guests will include Optimus Prime and Bumble Bee and people will be able to talk to drivers.
Brit Beat Concert
Brit Beat, a self-proclaimed #1 Best Beatles Tribute Band, will perform Beatles songs starting from 7:30-9:30 p.m. in the Orpheum Theater on Saturday.
The show will include six costume changes and an immersive multimedia backdrop. Tickets cost $25.
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Traditional favorites
Guided tours of the Galesburg Railroad Museum will be available from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and from noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets cost $6 for adults and $3 for children between ages 8 and 15.
Buses will depart from the Galesburg Railroad Museum for the BNSF Yard Tours on the hour between 12-3 p.m. on Friday and Saturday for $5 a person. VIP Yard Tours are available at 4 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday.
Tickets for the VIP tours cost $30 a person and go on sale at 2 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday. Face masks are required for the VIP tour.
The outdoor Vendor Fair market will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday on Mulberry Street. Art in the Park will be available from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday in Standish Park.
• The Model Train & Toy Show will take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday in the Knox Field House. Admission costs $5 to see the approximately 350 vendor tables and 10 model train layouts.
• The Western Illinois Auto Antique Car Cruise-In will take place from 4-8 p.m. on Saturday, featuring classic cars on Main St. between Kellogg and Cherry St.
• The Historical Hobo Village will be available from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday at Peck Park with food, live music, costumed re-enactors and rail traffic.
• The Lincoln & The Railroad exhibit will provide free live performance Prairie Players Civic Theatre on the former president and building of the transcontinental railroad by Lincoln interpreter Michael Krebs at 1 p.m., 2 p.m., 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. on Saturday.
• The 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament will take place from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday on Mulberry St. between Chambers and Seminary St. Participants must be 15 and up, entry fee is $100.
• Free movies and light refreshments will be available from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday in the Galesburg Public Library. Children’s crafts are available from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Discovery Depot for the cost of museum admission plus $2.
• The Firefighter’s Challenge will take place with the Knoxville Fire Department from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday on Mulberry Street between Chambers and Seminary streets.
People can check galesburgrailroaddays.com for the daily updated calendar.
Railroad Days changes
Railroad days will not have kids’ games on Main Street this year or the BBQ cook off.
Tessa Jones, communications manager at Galesburg’s Tourism and Visitors Bureau, noted that the festival is under new direction this year as the previous chair, Dennis Clark, retired last year.
Railroad Days is being run by two co-chairs this year, Julie King from the National Railroad Hall of Fame and Tony Oligney-Estill, community service supervisor for the Galesburg Police Department.
Jones said that with new leadership and events, the bureau hopes they can build a foundation for Railroad Days to attract more visitors who are not only interested in the city's history but its restaurants and live music as well.
"We're hoping to entice a lot more visitors last year,” Jones said. “We've already made a lot of interest for people traveling near and far to go to Railroad Days. so we are definitely excited to basically reboot it and get Railroad Days on track, pun intended.”
This article originally appeared on Galesburg Register-Mail: Galesburg's Railroad Days festival this weekend: Here's what's new
