September Events in Illinois

Take a look at our listing of event below, happening throughout Illinois in September.

National Stearman Fly-In

Sept. 1-6, 2025, Galesburg

Taking place every Labor Day weekend, this event celebrates America’s iconic military biplane, the Stearman, at Galesburg’s Municipal Airport.

During six days, visitors can experience a mix of flying events, technical seminars, live entertainment, delicious food and a relaxing atmosphere. The fly-in also offers the opportunity to experience flight in an open-cockpit biplane.

Learn more about the National Stearman Fly-In and how to schedule flights at stearmanflyin.com, or call (309) 343-6409.

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Chicago Jazz Festival

Sept. 3-6, 2026, Chicago 

Chicago Jazz Festival in Millennium Park, a Labor Day weekend tradition, celebrates all forms of jazz music. Programmed by the Jazz Institute of Chicago, it showcases local talent as well as national and international artists with four days of concerts and events. Admission is free. For more information, visit chicagojazzfestival.us.

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Warren County Prime Beef Festival

Sept. 3-10, 2025, Monmouth 

The Warren County Prime Beef Festival returns to Monmouth for its annual carnival. The Warren County Prime Beef Festival is a long-time Labor Day tradition for many Monmouth locals. Every year our festivities kick off with the Prime Beef Festival Princess Pageant. Contestants have an interview, a pop question, perform a talent, and even get to take part in a group dance! In addition to a variety of carnival rides, the event will also feature food vendors, a livestock auction, a 5K walk and run, a car show, children’s activities and an Ag Day for Kids on Friday. To see the official event calendar, visit warrencountyprimebeef.com.

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Nauvoo Grape Festival

Sept. 4-6, 2026, Nauvoo 

Visit the annual Nauvoo Grape Festival on Labor Day weekend for three days of family-friendly fun and entertainment centered around the Nauvoo community and its fruitful crops. The event features a Grape Stomp 5K walk and run, arts and crafts, food vendors, two parades, mud volleyball, live music, and much more. The festival also coincides with the Festival on Wheels Car Show. For more details, visit nauvoograpefestival.com or call 217-453-2528.

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Arcola Broomcorn Festival

Sept. 5-7, 2025, Arcola

For more than 50 years, the Arcola Broomcorn Festival honors Arcola’s unique heritage as a center of broomcorn production in the late 19th century. Family-friendly activities include broom-making demonstrations, arts and crafts vendors, free entertainment, food vendors and broom activities. The festival also includes a 5K and 10K race and the annual Broomcorn Parade featuring Arcola’s famous precision lawn mower drill team, the Lawn Rangers.

Visit arcolachamber.com/broomcorn-festival or call (217) 268-4530 for more information.

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Fall Festival at Goebbert’s Farm & Garden Center

Sept. 6-Oct. 31, 2025, South Barrington

You couldn’t ask for a better place to enjoy all the bounties of fall than Goebbert’s Farm & Garden Center. Their fall festival, which goes from mid-September until the end of October, offers endless activities and entertainment for the whole family to enjoy. Visitors will enjoy the staples of any fall festival – corn maze, wagon rides and pumpkin picking – but that’s not all. Goebbert’s Farm & Garden Center features attractions that you just can’t find anywhere else, such as a mechanical pumpkin-eating dinosaur, camel rides and a giraffe barn. To learn more, visit goebbertsgardencenter.com or call (847) 428-6727.

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Morton Pumpkin Festival

Sept. 10-13, 2025, Morton

Head to Morton, the Pumpkin Capital of the World, for this fall festival. Guests can enjoy a variety of activities throughout the event, including a carnival, drive-in movie nights, live entertainment, parades, the pumpkin market – which features local and handmade goods – the pumpkin pedal bike ride and so much more. Plus, don’t miss out on delicious food, including the beloved pumpkin pancake breakfast!

For more information about the festival, visit mortonpumpkinfestival.org or call (309) 263-2491.

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Murphysboro Apple Festival

Sept. 10-13, 2025, Murphysboro

The Murphysboro Apple Festival has been celebrating apples for more than 70 years, pies and rides at the oldest and largest alcohol-free festival in Southern Illinois. Attendees can enjoy an apple pie and apple butter contest, apple core throwing contest, 5K walk and run, and much more. You can also shop in the Arts & Crafts Fair, Appletime Emporium and Kiwanis General Store, or find delicious treats at the Appletime Bakery.

For more information about this year’s activities, call (618) 684-3200 or visit applefestival.murphysboro.com, check out their Facebook page or call (618) 684-3200.

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Geneseo Quilt Guild Show

Sept. 12-13, 2025, Geneseo

The Annual Geneseo Quilt Guild Show returns this fall with more than 200 impressive quilts on display. Attendees will have the opportunity to vote for their favorites on Friday, and ribbons will be displayed on Saturday. Other highlights include a raffle for a quilt appraised at $2,200, raffle baskets, a featured quilter, bed-turning demonstrations, vendors and an on-site certified appraiser for quilt appraisals. 

The show takes place at the Geneseo Community Center at 541 E. North St. from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. Proceeds from the show help fund the Geneseo Quilt Guild’s outreach projects and annual scholarship award. For more information, visit facebook.com/geneseoquiltguild. 

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Ridgway Popcorn Days

Sept. 13, 2025, Ridgway 

Held in Gallatin County, the annual Ridgway Popcorn Days welcomes visitors for a weekend filled with beauty pageants, a toy tractor sledge pull, carnival rides, fair food, live music and a big parade on Saturday at 1 p.m. The festival also features a cake walk, frog jumping, vendors, a popcorn-eating contest and local bands playing in bars along the street.

For more details, call (618) 559-9235 or visit the Ridgway Popcorn Days Facebook page.

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Street Fest

Sept. 13, 2025, Erie

This community has mapped its future through the Illinois Institute of Rural Affairs at Western Illinois University. This event also includes a vintage car and tractor display. It includes an artisan and farmers market, kids activities, food trucks and live music all day around its famous Erie triangle. Full details can be found at villageoferie.com/2024/03/19/street-fest-2024.

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Barn Keepers of Central Illinois Barn Tour

2025 dates TBD, Arrowsmith 

The McLean County Illinois Barn Keepers is sponsoring a self-guided Barn Tour this September in Arrowsmith Township. Registration is from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., and the tour runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event takes place rain or shine and costs $20 per carload. For more information, visit facebook.com/barnkeepers or contact Pat Huth at (309) 475-6951 or psh85po@gmail.com.

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Dwight Harvest Days

Sept. 18-21, 2025, Dwight

Celebrate the beginning of fall at the annual Dwight Harvest Days festival, taking place the third weekend in September. The four-day event kicks off on Thursday evening with a carnival and continues through Sunday with a full lineup of family-friendly festivities, including a craft show, live music, flea market, parade, 5K and 3K fun runs, car show, food vendors, and much more. For more information and a complete schedule of weekend events, visit dwighthd.com.

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Rushville Smiles Day

Sept. 19, 2025, Rushville

Visit Schuyler County to honor veterans at the annual Rushville Smiles Day this September. The tradition began in 1919 as a way to welcome soldiers back home after WWI. Each year, the Smiles Day committee chooses a different group of veterans to honor. To find more information about the event or register as a veteran in the parade, visit smilesday.org.

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Belleville Oktoberfest

Sept. 19-20, 2025, Belleville

Raise your steins and don your best lederhosen for the annual Oktoberfest in Belleville. Encompassing all the activities of the traditional German festival, activities include a stein-holding contest, a wiener dog race, a cornhole tournament, a car show, great food and live entertainment. Learn more at bellevilleoktoberfest.com.

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Big Rock Plowing Match

Sept. 19-21, 2025, Big Rock 

For more than 130 years, the Big Rock Plowing Match has celebrated friendly farmer competition this September at Plowman’s Park in Big Rock. The annual contest, which began back in 1895, invites farmers to plow the straightest, cleanest furrow, covering crop stubble. In addition to the plowing matches Saturday and Sunday, the event also includes food vendors, a bicycle parade, a watermelon eating contest, the Tractor Trot 5K, carnival rides, auctions and much more. To learn more about this year’s festivities, visit bigrockplowingmatch.org or call (630) 556-3501.

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Hardin County Fluorspar Festival

Sept. 20, 2025, Rosiclare

Located on the banks of the Ohio River, Rosiclare was once known as the Fluorspar Capital because so much of the uniquely colored mineral could be found under its soils. Each year, the community recognizes fluorspar’s influence with a downtown festival.

The Hardin County Fluorspar Festival features a carnival, hickory-smoked barbeque, a pet parade, food and craft vendors, a quilt show, an open house at the American Fluorite Museum, car shows and a large parade. The weekend also includes local musical talent and a finale featuring a large fireworks display at the City Park on the Ohio River.

To learn more, visit the event Facebook page.

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Golconda Shrimp Festival

Sept. 20, 2025, Golconda 

Head to historic downtown Golconda this September for the 23rd annual Golconda Shrimp Festival. Named the best food festival in Illinois by National Geographic, the event celebrates the harvest of locally grown freshwater shrimp with a fun-filled day of activities on Main Street. Festival highlights include live music throughout the day, a cornhole tournament, a children’s area and, of course, food vendors offering dozens of tasty shrimp dishes. The event takes place from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. To learn more, visit mainstreetgolconda.org/shrimp-festival or call (618) 683-6246.

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Street Art Fest 

Sept. 20, 2025, Highland 

Every September, the streets of Highland become a canvas for artists. Visit the downtown square from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. to watch talented local artists create colorful and complex masterpieces entirely out of sidewalk chalk. The festival also features a Makers Market of vendors offering unique handcrafted items, as well as games, food vendors, live music, and a “Kreative Kids Korner” with arts and crafts projects and other activities for children. Visit highlandillinois.com/streetartfestival or call (618) 654-3721 for more information. 

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Scarecrow Festival

Sept. 21, 2025, Bourbonnais 

The Bourbonnais Scarecrow Hollow Contest and Festival returns in September at Perry Farm Park. In the weeks leading up to the festival, the Bourbonnais Township Park District invites contestants to join in the fall fun and decorate the 150 scarecrow frames provided for the contest. The main event features all the imaginative scarecrows on display, in addition to a coffee and hot chocolate bar, live music and scarecrow voting. For more information about the event, visit btpd.org or call (815) 933-9905.

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Grundy County Corn Festival

Sept. 24-28, 2025, Morris

The Grundy County Corn Festival offers five days of exciting activities and entertainment. The event celebrates Grundy County’s rich agricultural history with craft shows, live music, a carnival, a 5K run and plenty of delicious food. Organizers encourage visitors to dress in their best jeans and flannels and stroll the decorated streets of downtown Morris while enjoying the festivities.

For more information and the complete event schedule, visit cornfestival.org or call (815) 942-2676.

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Honeybee Festival

Sept. 26-28, 2025, Paris 

Get the buzz on beekeeping at the annual Honeybee Festival in Paris. Held each year on the fourth weekend of September, the event features delicious food, unique crafts and an antique fair, plus the highly anticipated parade.

Guests can also enjoy live entertainment, and kids will have a blast at the inflatable obstacle course, rock wall, slide and other activities. Learn more about the Honeybee Festival on their Facebook page or call (217) 465-4179.

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Barry Apple Festival

2025 dates TBD, Barry

An apple a day isn’t nearly enough for the residents of Barry. They celebrate their favorite fruit with an entire festival devoted to it. The annual event draws a crowd that’s much larger than the town’s entire population. Spanning a whole weekend, the festival is filled with activities for people of all ages and interests. From apple pie contests to talent shows and pageants, there’s no shortage of friendly competition here. There’s also a quilt booth, a car show, a pet parade, bingo, live music, excellent food and more. Check out the Facebook page for a full list and schedule of activities.

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Old Fashioned Fall Harvest

2025 dates TBD, Erie

Bring the whole family to Bos Brothers Historical Farm this fall for the Old Fashioned Fall Harvest celebration. This working farm show features a variety of demonstrations in plowing, harvesting, corn shredding, weaving, blacksmithing, baking and much more. There will also be an extensive display of tractors and other unique farming equipment, and food will be available on the grounds. The event takes place at 8105 Springhill Road in Erie from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday, with a Sunday church service at 9:30 a.m. Admission and parking are free.

To learn more about the event, visit bosbroshistoricalfarm.com or facebook.com/bosbroshistoricalfarm.

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Johnny Appleseed Festival

Sept. 27, 2025, Crystal Lake

Celebrate the season at the annual Johnny Appleseed Festival in Crystal Lake, the city’s largest single-day event. The festival honors everything apple and autumn with antique apple cider press and peeler demonstrations, free entertainment, storytellers, a craft fair and farmers’ market. And visitors won’t go hungry thanks to lots of delicious apple goodies, including apple cider doughnuts, fresh apple juice, apple pie and more.

Speaking of pie, hungry festivalgoers can participate in the pie-eating contest or show off their skills in the pie-baking contest. They can also check out the creativity in the scarecrow decorating contest with categories such as scariest, most colorful and most creative.

And don’t miss the man of the hour, as Johnny Appleseed himself will be at the festival, sharing his story throughout the day. Learn more at downtowncl.org.

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Huntley Fall Fest

Sept. 26-28, 2025, Huntley

For more than 20 years, Huntley has welcomed autumn with its annual Fall Fest packed with entertainment and family-friendly fun. The three-day celebration includes a full carnival midway, live music, food vendors, beer garden, scarecrow building, kids’ activities, car and tractor shows, and a spectacular fireworks show on Saturday. Admission and entertainment are free. For more event details, call 847-669-8935 or visit huntleyfallfest.com.

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Vignette Bazaar Art Fair

Sept. 27, 2025, Jacksonfville

Hosted by Soap Co. Coffee House in Jacksonville, the Vignette Bazaar Art Fair welcomes local artists of all mediums to showcase their talents for the community. This celebration of creativity features everything from paintings and sculptures to photography and more. Bring your family and make your mark on the community wall, browse the many tents and stands full of beautiful art, grab some refreshments, then watch as the VaVa Circus caps the night off with fire dancing. Whether you’re an artist eager to showcase your work or an art enthusiast ready to discover something new, you’re sure to find some wonder at the Vignette Bazaar. The event takes place on Saturday, Sept. 27, from 5 to 9 p.m. For more information, visit facebook.com/61572213444757.

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Apple ’n Pork Festival

Sept. 27-28, 2025, Clinton

Head to Clinton for the Apple ’n Pork Festival, featuring two days filled with harvest season treats and fun. Held annually the last weekend in September at the C.H. Moore Homestead & DeWitt County Museum, the local tradition offers plenty of old-fashioned and delicious food, including apple treats, pork dishes and more, plus free live music and entertainment, craft vendors selling handmade goods, a scarecrow contest, historical demonstrations and exhibits, Victorian mansion tours, a huge flea market, a tractor show, and more. Learn more at chmoorehomestead.org/apple-n-pork-festival or call 217-935-6066.

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Peoria Art Guild Fine Art Fair

Sept. 27-28, 2025, Peoria

The Peoria Art Guild Fine Art Fair is celebrating its 63rd year of bringing original art to central Illinois. This nationally recognized art fair offers a weekend of creative fun with art from 130 juried fine artists on the Peoria riverfront, in addition to an interactive community mural and a Kids’ Art Festival where children can create their own masterpieces. The event also includes live music and food and beverage vendors. All proceeds benefit the Peoria Art Guild’s community outreach. Visit peoriaartguild.org or call 309-637-2787 to learn more.

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Share Your Illinois Event

Are we missing your favorite August events in Illinois? Send the details to ilfbpartners@jnlcom.com, and we may feature them on this website and in a future issue of Illinois Partners magazine.