Small Town America Sesquicentennial

This parade entry reminded me of my own experience of dressing up in “Little House on the Prairie” attire during the town’s Centennial in 1973. There’s a pic of me somewhere but wasn’t to be found this weekend.

I just returned from my second and final trip of the summer to visit my parents and join them in attending our small, rural Illinois hometown’s sesquicentennial. I was 5 when the town celebrated its centennial back in 1973, and I have to say that while much has changed, much of the camaraderie of small town America has stayed the same, at least for a few days as we caught up with one another and reminisced on what things were like all those years ago. 

First detail was my train ride from Chicago to Pontiac, IL. This was the second time this summer that a connecting flight was canceled due to potential dangerous weather conditions and Amtrak saved the day. I took the Blue Line from O’Hare to Union station where I waited several hours to catch a train downstate. Honestly, it felt a bit empowering to take on a new experience as I made my way, asking for help when I needed it. It was interesting to interact with strangers and to explore Union Station in Chicago. It was also encouraging to know there are friendly people just about everywhere you go.

Union Station, Chicago 

I arrived to Mom and Dad’s late in the evening Wednesday, had a quick supper, and tried on dresses that I would model later that weekend. More to come on that.

Thursday morning, after taking a stroll through Mom’s gardens, she and I traveled to the small town of Mackinaw where we did a little shopping and had a delicious lunch at the Mackinaw Depot—a refurbished train depot/Tea House. 

The Depot is known for their tiered meals. Top tier— soup or salad, middle tier—main item, lower tier—dessert. Yummy food!

Friday, Dad took me on a “3+ hour tour” of his, Kendall, and Mark’s corn and soybean fields, a fairly thorough drive through the towns of Cornell & Long Point, and finally two cemeteries where I saw my grandparents’ and great grandparents’ grave markers. 

I pulled this pic from the internet, but this could’ve easily been taken on our drive.

Our town’s celebration kicked off on Friday evening with an Ice Cream Social. I learned fairly quickly that this weekend would be all about who I would and wouldn’t recognize. When decades go by without seeing people it can be somewhat entertaining to see who I immediately knew, those I had to take a minute to know, and those I ended up having to ask, the most awkward being when they recognized me and said hello using my name without me having a clue. 

I was the first to recognize Dad’s favorite cousin, Kaye. He lit up when he realized who she was and gave her a big bear hug. 

Saturday morning started with a parade that was super fun and energized the crowd. 

The parade was followed by a slow walk over to the church my grandparents’ attended when they were living. There, over a hundred quilts made by community members were displayed. The morning was filled with greeting and catching up with people I hadn’t seen for many years. 

I got a kick out of all the “white Jesus” pictures displayed in one of the town’s churches and wondered how this depiction of Jesus helped to shape my early experiences of faith.

Several weeks back when mom asked me if I’d like to participate in the style show I was a bit unsure about what this would entail. A former neighbor and babysitter of mine, Marilyn, put together a fun, entertaining, and informative show that displayed outfits from the town’s earliest inhabitants (mid 1800s) to current times. She had everything incredibly organized such that with each of us having about 4 changes, the show ran smoothly without a hitch as she provided details on fashions of the times. The dresses/outfits were all worn by current and former community members, which added extra interest.

Mom modeling her mother’s wedding dress. 

This wool coat from the ‘40s was incredibly heavy.  

Mom wearing a dress from the ‘60s.

A 1990’s prom dress.

Mom’s outfit from the ‘80s, shoulder pads and all.

This was from a wedding trousseau from (I think) the ‘50s.

The style show was followed by a reader’s theater that Mom participated in. Greg Tullis, played Amon Turner, who owned and operated our small town general store. As a young child, I remember the “penny candy” section (probly more like nickel and dime by the time I came along) that made up a large part of the store. It was a dark and dusty space that was a favorite place of the town kids. 

Charlotte Wilhelm, nonagenarian and a town hairdresser for 40+ years, was also part of the show. It was fun hearing about her childhood memories.

A true highlight was getting to reconnect with a few classmates. One thing I have come away with from this experience are the handful of people that were very kind and friendly, just as I remembered them. Not sure if any of them will read this, but I’d like to highlight them, as it was such a delight to reconnect with them. Schoolmates from Woodland High School—Marie, Natalie, Tammy, Laurie, Tara, Elizabeth, Kim, Julie, Diana R (only got to see her beautiful smile from across the park), her husband and my track mate Tim; Others who were either teachers, neighbors, babysitters, or 4-H Leaders—Phyllis, Arlene, Janet (and her daughter), Dawne, Amy, Paul, Allen, Fred, Jerry, Jean, Janeen, Sandy, Linda, Lanny, Greg, Phyllis, David, Rick and Holly. I wish I had gotten a photo of every one of them, but I just didn’t think to. I may very well be forgetting someone as it was a bit of a whirlwind weekend. 

One last thing. An absolute favorite childhood memory was riding around town on the Rittenhouse golf cart. I’m not sure if it still runs, but my little fanny sat on this seat countless times as Diana and Co. tooled around town on this much adored little vehicle. 

It was a very full, fun, and interesting weekend traveling down memory lane with Mom and Dad, and I’m so grateful I got to be a part. Mom and Dad, thank you for keeping me going on this busy weekend. I sure hope I have the energy and zest you both have when I’m your age. ;-)