For More Than 125 Years This Small Town Has Hosted The Longest-Running Festival In Illinois
By Linze Rice|Published August 07, 2023
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Linze Rice
Author
Ope! From the rural cornfields of DeKalb County, Linze is an Illinois native and true Midwestern gal who can make a mean bonfire and whip up a perfect marshmallow salad. Since 2014, her bylines and photography have appeared in the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Magazine, Chicago Sun-Times, and Block Club Chicago/DNAinfo Chicago, Only in Your State, and more. She has interviewed Dolly Parton, written about beloved diners along historic Route 66, visited the last Rainforest Cafe in the Illinois, and reviewed luxurious English manor-inspired hotels. Whether it's writing about a local gem or world-renowned establishment, Linze brings a heartwarming and historical perspective to each story, using facts, wit, and personal experience to impress upon readers the importance of culture, food, travel, and all things local. Her favorite destinations in Illinois include Starved Rock State Park, Chicago's Edgewater neighborhood, the charming small town of Sycamore, and historic Rosehill Cemetery. When she's not writing or photographing, Linze enjoys gardening, spending time with her husband and pets, cooking, baking, and grilling, and relaxing with trashy TV.
They say not too much happens in a small town. Life runs a little slower and a little more simple. Yet small towns in Illinois are rich in tradition, forging their own cultures that are unique to each place. Oftentimes, these traditions culminate in an annual celebration in the form of a festival, which showcases the very best of the town’s foods, arts, music, and community spirit. And for over a century, the oldest festival in Illinois has been an excellent example of that.