130 Years Ago August 29, 1896 The twentieth annual fair of the Fairbury Union Agricultural Board will take place September 21 to 25. This year there are to be two political days upon which the crowd will be addressed by prominent speakers. On Wednesday the republicans will predominate, and Thursday will be Democratic Day. Mr. and Mrs. Charles Merit and children started overland Wednesday by team and buggy for a visit with friends and relatives at Minonk. Mrs. L. B. Dominy, Mr

Chief Edwards, right, administers the oath of office to new police officers in Fairbury Wednesday night. New police officers were sworn-in during Wednesday’s regular meeting of the Fairbury City Council. The three officers are Johnannes Steber, Ethan Murray and Richard Longstreth. Fairbury Police Chief Chris Edwards said they are at full staff now with the hires. The chief also revealed he was accepted into an orientation course for police chiefs at Peoria, which is an intens

The first settlers in this area built rough log cabins, but as soon as sawmills and railroads made lumber available, they quickly switched to wood-frame houses. One of the fastest ways to build a two-story farmhouse was balloon framing, yet a small fire in the basement or on the first floor could race up the walls and destroy the entire house in a frighteningly short time. The first white settlers in what became Livingston County were Valentine and Rachel Darnall, who arrive

PC Superintendent Brian Quam addresses the Fairbury Rotary Club Tuesday afternoon. A damaged gym roof and buckling floors are no more for Prairie Central Junior High School in Forrest thanks to extensive work over the past several months. The gym roof was damaged by severe weather late last year which led to gym improvements. The floor was ripped out – which took over 200 saw blades. New LED lights were installed, the sound system replaced and new scoreboards purchased. Then

A design for the future East Park, image via Farnsworth/City of Fairbury. Ideas were shared for a new park during a public hearing held Wednesday prior to the regular Fairbury City Council meeting. The East Park would be located near the wastewater treatment plant and high school practice fields. The seven-acre area is located by the current walking trail as the city acquired the land earlier this year. A current Farnsworth Group proposal includes features such as a dog park,

Fine Arts Cora Bachtold, 1 third, 1 fourth; Hazel Bachtold, 1 fourth; Rosalee Bachtold, 1 third; Wren Bachtold, 1 second, 1 third; Jackson Bahler, 1 fourth; Lane Bahler, 1 first, 1 second; Maxwell Blackwell, 1 second; Ronan Bogart, 1 third; Gerald Brandt, 1 first, 2 seconds; Roger Brown, 1 second; Isaac Burke, 1 second; Katie Burke, 1 first, 1 third; Lincoln Burke, 1 third; Ian Campbell, 1 first, 2 seconds, 1 third, 1 fourth; Kaislee Casson, 1 second, 1 third; Kasen Casson, 2

Today, most visitors travel to the Fairbury Fair by automobile, but in the early years, the journey to Fairbury was very different. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, thousands of people traveled to the Fairbury Fair by railroad. Special excursion trains brought visitors from surrounding towns and farming communities, making the fair one of the largest annual gatherings in the area. The first Fairbury Fair was held in 1876, at a time when railroads were rap

For many years, the Fairbury Fair has been known for its livestock shows, horse racing, and agricultural exhibits. However, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, fairgoers were also treated to a wide variety of unusual and sometimes daring entertainment acts. Some of these performances were so spectacular that they drew thousands of people to Fairbury. One of the most remarkable attractions ever presented at the Fairbury Fair occurred in 1899. That year, crow

Several ghost towns once existed in the Fairbury area. The histories of Avoca, Champlin, Lodemia, Potosi Corner, and Rosealthe are fairly well understood. Cassville, however, remains a mystery. The first mention of the existence of a Cassville, Illinois, is the April 29, 1915, obituary of Civil War veteran George Washington Sutton. This obituary states that he spent his childhood in Cassville, Illinois, from 1846 to 1861. Further genealogical research indicates that whoev

The Fairbury police chief told members of the Fairbury City Council Wednesday evening that the recent Prairie Dirt Classic race weekend went well. Chief Chris Edwards reported no law enforcement-related issues with out-of-town visitors. “Overall, it went smooth for us,” Edwards said. Alderman Jim Tipton asked if it was possible to allow golf carts to travel out to Kilgus Farmstead during PDC week on First Street. The road changes to county control around the grain bin area, a

For 150 years, the Fairbury Fair has been one of the most important annual events in the Fairbury community. While the fair is often remembered for its livestock exhibits, horse racing, and entertainment acts, it also served another important purpose. For generations of residents, the fairgrounds became a place where people gathered to see friends, visit neighbors, and reconnect with members of the community they might not have seen for an entire year. The first Fairbury Fai

Organizing a small-town fair has never been easy. For 150 years, the Fairbury Fair has required careful planning and hard work by generations of volunteers. Over that long period, fair managers have faced many challenges, including bad weather, financial difficulties, performers who failed to appear, and even several years when the fair could not be held at all. The first Fairbury Fair was held in 1876. Like many agricultural fairs of that era, its primary purpose was to prom

130 Years Ago July 18, 1896 David Henry, son of Mr. and Mrs. George Henry, had his arm badly broken Thursday morning while scuffling with another boy. E. A. Agard is attending the national convention of the American Glass Blowers at Streator. Mr. Agard is a member of the executive committee of that body and prominent in the councils of the leaders. D. K. Unsicker has traded the Seeders property, corner of Elm and Second Streets, and 17½ acres southwest of town, for an elevato

Fairbury News file photo showing a previous Prairie Dirt Classic check presentation. One of the elite racing events in the country is here. It is Prairie Dirt Classic weekend at Fairbury Speedway with thousands of visitors in town through Sunday. “People continue to talk about what Fairbury has,” said Matt Curl, owner and promoter of Fairbury Speedway. Curl and his crew are anticipating around 7,500 people on Saturday night for the premier event. The track sees more some year

Dr. Dan Brewer practiced medicine in Fairbury for more than half a century. When he began his medical practice in 1876, the science of medicine was still developing. By the time he died in 1933, medical knowledge had advanced dramatically. During those fifty-seven years, Dr. Brewer witnessed some of the most important changes in medical history. Dr. Brewer was born in 1843 in Warren, Ohio. During his youth, medicine was still a profession where doctors relied heavily on pers

The recent increase in the number of e-bikes in Fairbury generated quite a bit of discussion during Wednesday’s Fairbury City Council meeting. Alderman Bruce Weber reported that he had several citizens contact him expressing their concern about the safety of e-bikes on public streets and walking trails. City Attorney Matt Schrock will investigate recent changes to the law regarding e-bikes and report his findings to the City Council. Superintendent Brett Ashburn reported t

During the late 1960s, a small but ambitious college operated just a few miles from Fairbury in Pontiac, Illinois. Known as Winston Churchill College, the school existed for only about five years, but during that brief time, many Livingston County students—including some from Fairbury—attended classes there. Today, the college is almost forgotten, but its story reveals an interesting chapter in local history and demonstrates how quickly the educational landscape in Illinois

130 Years Ago July 4, 1896 Jacob Von Tobel is taking a three weeks' vacation from the lumber business and is visiting old acquaintances in Iowa. The lumber yard is being ably looked after by his son, Edward. The graduating class had a picnic at the Avoca Church last Friday and enjoyed themselves immensely. The Churchills are building an elegant residence on their lots at the corner of Second and Maple Streets. The marriage of Isaac N. Gardner and Miss Pearl E. Tappin occurred

As settlers moved west from the East Coast into Indiana and Illinois, they soon discovered that farming the vast Midwestern prairies required techniques different from those used in the East. To help educate these pioneer farmers and share practical information, Prairie Farmer magazine was founded in 1841. The magazine is still published today and remains a respected source of agricultural information for Illinois farmers. In 1925, one of the magazine's editors, Clifford Gr

A bid correction was approved by members of the Prairie Central Board of Education during a special July 2 meeting. According to information from Superintendent Brian Quam, the board needed to make a correction to the bids accepted on June 18 and award the HVAC controls to Alpha Controls for the new school, Junior High and Upper Elementary. With the correction, it was recommended by Quam to approve the base bids and seven alternate bids for the new school. The board also corr