In just a few short days, this year’s Galesburg Railroad Days celebration will be upon us.
The carnival runs from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. Thursday in the Public Square and covers Main Street to Seminary Street. Wristbands for carnival rides are $20 and on Thursday, people can purchase $50 wristbands good through Sunday.
The carnival is only part of the fun. Between Thursday and Sunday, activities include a firefighter water fight, railyard tours, model train and toy shows, flea markets and much more.
A complete list of events can be found at galesburgrailroaddays.org.
Railroad Days Committee Chairman Dennis Clark tells WGIL other hotly anticipated events include a big wheel race and 3-on-3 basketball.
“Right next to that, we have the pied piper,” he says, “which is going to be a percussion petting zoo. A hundred instruments from around the world and he’s going to put on a couple shows and get kids interacting with music.”
Clark says a big part of Railroad Days is behind the scenes.
“We have 17 nonprofits or churches involved this year,” he says. “That’s the main focus of the council, to get as many nonprofits involved as possible to show that it is a Galesburg community event.”
One attraction will not be on hand as originally announced. According to a Fort Wayne Railroad news release, the steam-powered engine No.765 expected to come to town will no longer make the trip from Chicago due to low ticket sales.
The celebration wraps up at 5 p.m. Sunday.
