Illinois State Fair
More than 100 4-H members from Adams, Brown, Hancock, Schuyler and Pike counties competed Aug. 11 at the Illinois State Fair in Springfield with their 4-H general projects in areas ranging from welding to photography and more. Six local 4-H members — Marissa Mintle, Everett Hodgson and Claire Taute of Liberty, Elizabeth Hubbard of West…
Read Full Article SPRINGFIELD – Governor JB Pritzker and Illinois State Fair officials unveiled the Butter Cow Wednesday in the Dairy Building on the Illinois State Fairgrounds. Inspired by “It’s Showtime!” the 2024 fair theme, sculptor Sarah Pratt’s creation captures the magic of the fair through the eyes of a child. While the Butter Cow is the undisputed star…
Read Full Article SPRINGFIELD Ill. — The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) will host a cicada-themed art show during the Illinois State Fair from Aug. 8-18. Illinois is the epicenter of a rare double cicada brood emergence this summer, and IDNR wants to commemorate the occasion with a public art show in Conservation World. Anyone can participate…
Read Full Article The Illinois State Fair – a multi-million dollar annual agriculture festival in Springfield – reported a nine-year attendance record this year. The state Department of Agriculture, which hosts the fair each year, reported on Tuesday that about 708,000 people attended the fair, an 11 percent increase from 2022. Department officials attributed the increase to good…
Read Full Article SPRINGFIELD – With the 2023 Illinois State Fair about to get underway, Gov. JB Pritzker and Department of Agriculture Director Jerry Costello II officially unveiled this year’s butter cow. The cow was sculpted by artist Sarah Pratt and inspired by dairy farmer Lorilee Schultz, from Mill-R-Mor Dairy in Orangeville, who is depicted harvesting milk from…
Read Full Article MACOMB, Ill. – Not only did Western Illinois University senior agriculture major Ashtin Guyer, of Flat Rock, IL, show this year’s Illinois State Fair Grand Champion Market Steer, her entry also created a bidding war between Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, and his wife, MK, to purchase her entry, “King,” which ended by matching a fair…
Read Full Article SPRINGFIELD – Along with fried foods, carnival rides and an 800-pound cow made of butter, the Illinois State Fair is known for its political theater. For the Statehouse press corps, it means we clear our schedules for at least two days in mid-August each year to take in the candidate stump speeches, hand shaking and…
Read Full Article SPRINGFIELD – In a series of downstate news conferences coinciding with the Illinois State Fair, Gov. JB Pritzker this week gave an update on the possibility of a special session, outlined new state infrastructure investments and announced a new program for some Illinoisans over age 55. While the governor quickly announced he would call a…
Read Full Article SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker and Illinois State Fair organizers unveiled the 101st State Fair butter cow Wednesday, an unofficial kickoff of the fair which began Thursday, Aug. 11, and runs through Aug. 21. The sculpture – by Iowan Sarah Pratt – consists of more than 800 pounds of recycled butter in the shape of a cow…
Read Full Article SPRINGFIELD – After a one-year interruption last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Illinois State Fair in Springfield is set to reopen Thursday with new attractions and new safety requirements. Among the new requirements, Illinois Department of Agriculture Director Jerry Costello II said during a media briefing Friday, will be a mask mandate at…
Read Full Article