Exhibit of Lincoln Train

Galesburg Railroad Days will be celebrating their 38th year as a festival from June 26th through 28th. Our Railroad Museum and Amtrak Depot will be filled with a variety of on track and off track displays this year. Kloke Locomotive Works of Elgin, Illinois is providing the now legendary Lincoln Funeral Car replica and the Leviathan63 steam locomotive, a working replica of an 1850’s locomotive. This fabrication shop was founded by David Kloke, a man who has spent over 40 years in the construction business. Of his many accomplishments through the years the Leviathan63 is his pride and joy. His "hobby" took him 10 years to create and it "WOW'S" everyone who sees and hears it. The Leviathan63 is truly a beautiful site!

The Amtrak Exhibit Train will be on track during Railroad Days as part of Amtrak Train Days across the nation. Through the display of artifacts, memorabilia and interactive exhibits, a remarkable story unfolds of our advancement to become the leader in U.S. intercity passenger rail and high-speed rail initiatives.

In addition to all the fun at the Amtrak Depot there will be shuttle service to and from the Model Train and Memorabilia Show at Carl Sandburg College. This is one of the Midwest’s best model train shows with dozens of vendors and plenty to see and buy.

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The shuttle will also make round trips to the Carl Sandburg State Historic Site. Visit Carl’s birthplace cottage, see the many artifacts in the museum visitor’s center and walk the garden to Remembrance Rock. The ashes of Carl, his wife Lillian and daughter Helga are interred there.
Recently, the State Historic Site was dedicated as a National Literary Landmark. A bust created by artist Lonnie Stewart was recently added to the garden.

Michael Krebs and Debra Ann Miller will reprise their roles as President and Mrs. Lincoln with a performance on Thursday night. They will be at the Depot for much of Railroad Days. Their performances have taken them to The U.S. Capitol in Washington DC, Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum, New Salem Historic Site, Hoover Presidential Library, Gerald Ford Museum, Harold Washington Library, Chicago’s Department of Tourism, Indiana, Minnesota, Virginia, Florida, and Chicago Historical Societies, and many more locations. They are regular fixtures for Galesburg’s Railroad Days.

This year’s festival is significant because it is back on Main for the second straight year.
The street will be alive with chalk artists, food, vendors, and activities. The carnival will be provided by Wilson Family Shows.
Shaun Hays - aka "Chicago Chalk Champ" has been performing high energy, keynote addresses and Chalk art performances to millions globally since 1999 when a youth pastor asked him to help illustrate a lesson in paint to urban youth. Since then, he has entertained in 48 states and brought crowds to cheers and even beautiful tears in many countries overseas (Egypt, United Kingdom, Philippines, etc.)

Galesburg is a small city of about 32,000 people in Western Illinois. We are an Amtrak community with daily passenger service to and from Chicago. There is rail service to and from the west coast as well. About 100,000 people step on Amtrak trains in Galesburg annually. We are located on I-74 about 2 and half hours from Chicago, 45 minutes from the Quad Cities and Peoria. Burlington Northern Santa Fe has a major hump classification yard and diesel repair shop in Galesburg. For a complete listing of events during Railroad Days contact the Galesburg Welcome Center at 309-343-2485 or visit www.galesburgrailroaddays.org.

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