Roundtable: What are your favorite Galesburg summer events?
What is your favorite summer event or attraction in the Galesburg area and why?
Best Galesburg events revolve around food
To say I love food may be an understatement. It has been and will always be "The Great Communicator." It shouldn't be a surprise the Galesburg summer festivals that are among my favorites are Taste of Galesburg and Railroad Days. Starting with Taste, this is definitely the big draw for foodies. What makes the event so much fun is running into friends and saying something like "Did you try the Mahi Fish Taco from Iron Spike or Whisky Barrel's dessert pretzel bites?"
The other summer event that is a favorite is Railroad Days. Besides dizzying rides, it features two of the best carnival treats that have possibly ever been invented (cue the angelic music) the lemon shake-up, and of course the funnel cake. It's always obvious which vendor is selling either of these delicacies by who has the longest line of people impatiently waiting. A lemon shake-up isn't that difficult to make, but a homemade one rarely captures the same magic. The bottom line events revolving around food are winners. — John Hunigan
Time travel involved in favorites: Heritage Days, car shows
In thinking about the things I like about summer, it occurred to me that they seem to involve time travel.
Heritage Days and the Rendezvous at Lake Storey bring together a lot of people who like preserving and celebrating the old ways. Blacksmiths, quilters, trappers and soldiers show people how things used to be done.
Car shows are another form of time travel. People wander up and down Main Street and reminisce about the cars of their youth — the ones they had or the ones they wish they had.
Baseball games also hearken back to an earlier, simpler time. Watching kids play ball at O.N. where their parents and grandparents played attests to the timelessness of the sport.
So, as the days lengthen and the years grow shorter, I find summer is my opportunity to travel back in time. — Harry Bulkeley
Stearman Fly-In tops long list of Galesburg events
There has been a series of events I have enjoyed during my time in Galesburg: The very earliest Railroad Days, when actual gandy-dancers displayed their skills; the parades associated with Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day with a variety of regional high school bands including Galesburg High School’s; the early years of Art in the Park with more art and less marketplace; and the wonderful Great Balloon Race which is both visually delightful and presents an annual reminiscence of my own two rides: one over Galesburg, and the other over Knox County.
But, my favorite event is the weeklong National Stearman Fly-In which celebrated its 50th year in 2021. There are about 1,000 of these planes still flying and last year there were about 140 here. The Fly-in will be Sept. 5-10 this year and will feature the usual displays of wonderfully preserved and maintained planes demonstrating remarkable flying skills. If you have not yet had a ride in a Stearman you have missed a real treat, which you can remedy this year. Mine was splendid! — Laurie Muelder
Stearman Fly-In connects to my love of planes
Before I was 5 years old, my father and a friend of his arranged with a pilot of a small, single engine propeller plane to fly above Chicago along the shore of Lake Michigan. They took me with them. To say I enjoyed it is an enormous understatement.
For a couple of years we lived in California, right next to a small airport. We went onto the field and looked at the aircraft.
During my career in Information Technology, I had many occasions to fly to all over the country, visiting our remote offices or various software companies. I always loved it.
After retirement I took a Private Pilot Ground School class and a pilot training class, so it probably is not surprising that my favorite "attraction" in Galesburg is the Stearman Fly-In. If you can’t get to the Galesburg Airport, even in Knoxville you can view Stearmans flying overhead. (The airport is better!) — Charlie Gruner
Galesburg a great place to be in the summer
When living in Arizona, I would bring the entire family back to Galesburg just before RR Days and leave several days after the 4th of July. At that time, I still owned my childhood home and for two weeks, the family would experience “small town” living. It was a great reprieve from the oppressive heat and hectic urban living. Those visits back to Illinois just revitalized me. When moving back to the area in 2004 and finding a country home, it again added a level of relaxation and contentment.
I really like attending movies at the Orpheum, libations at some of the local watering holes, going downtown and visiting the Farmer’s Market on Saturdays. RR days still has some draw for me but I really like the Stearman Fly-In and the Heritage days event at Lake Storey. Overall — I really like a summer morning jog at the Lake and living on a country road. Even though I spend about half my time in Arizona, I still love summers in the Midwest. I am making my “list” of what I want to do this summer with great anticipation. Galesburg will always be home to me. — Stephen Podwojski
July 4th festivities at Monmouth airport, Citizens Lake
Independence Day, no contest. For years the day began with a fly-in breakfast at Monmouth airport. There would be pancakes, sausage, hash browns, juice and coffee. And lots of folks you hadn’t seen in months. Soon the city band would begin playing a medley of patriotic songs. I don’t ever remember it raining.
How this will go in the future isn’t clear, since the hanger was destroyed in a fire and there have been the usual hassles over permits, money.
After dark there would be fireworks at Citizens Lake, with the multi-generational crowds oohing and ahhing at the most spectacular bursts.
In between and for days on either side, our dogs would whine and complain. (One even hid in the bathtub until the noise receded.)
But I remember that long ago. I must have violated every safety warning imaginable. Firecrackers were just a part of growing up. — William Urban
The Community Roundtable runs each Sunday and is made up of local writers. Community writers answer one question each week in 150 words or fewer.
This article originally appeared on Galesburg Register-Mail: Roundtable: What are your favorite Galesburg summer events?
