Celebrate Hog Days with Kewanee: Festival, parks keep visitors busy for summer bash

Kewanee will celebrate its 56th Hog Days Sept. 4-7 with a parade, hog barbecue, and carnival fun downtown. (Photo submitted by Henry County Tourism Bureau)

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There’s a special treat for the hungry in Kewanee, where one of the largest outdoor pork barbecues will be going on Friday through Sept. 7.

Kewanee Hog Days is in its 56th year, which has given them time to come up with their butterfly and pork patty sandwiches cooked to perfection. They grill more than 25,000 pork sandwiches each festival, but that’s not all that’s going on.

With hogs being the centerpiece of the festival, the event actually begins earlier in the week, at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, with the barrow show at Black Hawk East College agricultural arena 1501 state Route 78. Here, the best pig of the show is crowned king hog.

Having set the stage for a weekend of hog fun, the rest of the festivities continue on Friday through Monday. Here are a few of the things to look for:

■ The hog Stampede begins at 8 a.m. Saturday near the YMCA on First Street, and ends back at the Y. This is a 4-mile run/walk. A race for kids, 7 and younger, follows at 9:30 a.m., with a 1-mile race at 9:45 a.m.

■ Then head to the car show in the green space on Third Street from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.

■ The parade starts at 2 p.m. Saturday at East and Second streets. It runs about 1.5 hours. It’s a good idea to bring a lawn chair.

■ Free stage shows will be featured Saturday and Sunday evenings beginning at 6:15, and at 2:30 p.m. Monday.

■ Rotorview helicopter rides will be available in daylight hours every day starting Friday in the green space along Third Street. The cost is $25 a person. Cameras are allowed.

Kewanee is more than a festival, so visitors may want to do some further exploring. Johnson Sauk State Recreation Trail is at 28616 Sauk Trail Road. The park offers picnic spots, fishing, and wild flower gazing.

Woodland Palace at Historic Francis Park, 4 miles east of Kewanee on U.S. Route 34, is an unusual house with a windmill. It’s open daily May through September. The cost is $2 for adults and $1 for children 5-12.

There are two golf courses, antique shopping, and Henry County’s scenery to look forward to. Whether it’s a festival or a look at the past, Kewanee has much to offer to visitors from the Sauk Valley.

If you go

What: 56th annual Kewanee Hog Days

When: Sept. 4-7

Where: Downtown Kewanee

Cost: Varies; many events free

Information: www.kewaneehogdays.com, www.visithenrycounty.com, 309-937-1255