The 134th edition of the Sandwich Fair – first held in 1888 – is in full swing drawing thousands of people past the gates.
The fair, situated on some 200 acres at the fairgrounds on the southern border of DeKalb County in Sandwich, runs through Sunday.
“We host the fair in a beautiful time of the year in a park-like setting with lots of trees,” Sandwich Fair Association Board President Larry Dannewitz said.
It took a pandemic to cancel the fair in 2020.
“We used to be able to say we were the oldest continuous fair (in Illinois) but due to the pandemic we can no longer hold that,” Dannewitz said.
Generations of families have been involved and attended the activities over the decades, officials said.
Ron Brummel was in the truck pull pit on Thursday revving a 650 cubic inch Ford Hemi motor before heading to the track.
Hundreds of people filled the stands to watch the annual truck pull, one of the attractions of the five-day fair.
Brummel has been competing in truck pulls since 1979.
“It’s fascinating to think we are pulling more weight than people can say is possible,” said Brummel, 64.
Drivers compete in different classes and winners are determined by who can go the furthest.
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“We are pulling a sled for distance. The further you go the heavier it gets,” he said.
The competition in the early days began with horse pulls when plow horses would pull the sled, said Brummel, a corn and soybean farmer in Hinckley.
Brooke Wilson, 41, has been going to the fair since her youth.
“We are a truck pull family. My life shuts down three weeks before the Sandwich Fair,” Wilson said Thursday.
Chuck and Donna Bernhardt of Sandwich were with their son and daughter-in-law and grandson at the truck pull at the fair Thursday.
“I like the roar of the engines and the crowds plus there’s lots of fun for the kids,” Chuck Bernhardt said.
“We missed the fair during COVID. It’s refreshing to see people enjoying life again,” Donna Bernhardt said.
Bonnie Bernhardt, 82, was volunteering in the United Church of Sandwich concession stand at the fair where the main attraction was homemade fruit pies.
“I have been volunteering for probably 55 years. I enjoy the friendly people,” said Bernhardt.
Karen Breunig is a longtime volunteer in the Information and Souvenir Gazebo at the fair.
“The fair is a place where everyone is happy to be here,” Breunig said. “This year’s featured souvenir is a custom-made pottery croc that highlights the 1905 Home Arts Building.”
Karen Monkemeyer and her two sisters-in-law, Pam and Penny Monkemeyer, were back as superintendents of the Junior Foods and Open Foods and Canning Divisions in the Home Arts Building, where hundreds of people submitted entries for the contests in those divisions.
Andrew Yohanan was awarded a blue ribbon for a two-layer frosted carrot cake.
“It was a very moist cake with walnuts and the frosting was spot on,” Karen Monkemeyer said.
People enter year after year, she said.
“Once you get a blue ribbon, you get addicted. It’s like a competitive sport – you want to win. You want to be the top baker,” she said.
The three Monkemeyers have followed in the footsteps of their later mother-in-law Renee Monkemeyer, who was involved in the Sandwich Fair for 50 years.
“We do it for the tradition. Our husbands were raised with the fair and we were indoctrinated into it. Now our children are involved in the fair,” she said.
Linda Girardi is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.