SANDWICH, Ill. — Billed as the oldest continuous fair in the Midwest, the Sandwich Fair, in southern DeKalb County, will kick off its 125th running fair Sept. 5-9.

“We have a lot of plans. Some are a little more concrete; some are still in the works,” said Charlotte Tyrrell, chair of a committee scheduling special events.

No stranger to the local fair, Tyrrell’s husband, Kenneth, sits on its board of directors and serves as the general livestock superintendent. She has shown dairy cattle at the fair for a number of years.

“We’ve been quite involved; I guess that’s why they asked me to be on this committee,” Charlotte Tyrrell said.

The fair will kick off with an opening ceremony at 10 a.m. Sept. 5 that will include the Sandwich High School marching band and chorus. Opening day also will include golf cart rides for the first 200 seniors, from 9 a.m.-noon, from the senior center across Suydam Road to the gate.

“Seniors can come to the fair that day and not have to worry about parking so far away,” Tyrrell said.

An ice cream social is planned for 1 p.m. that Thursday in the fair’s hospitality tent.

A number of special activities are planned that Friday, beginning with a 5 p.m. vintage baseball game, between the local Sandwich Millers and the Somonauk Blue Stockings, in the track infield. According to Mike “Ace” Adrian, baseball hasn’t been played at the fair for decades.

He said he would like to see players who did have that opportunity to attend, and share their memories. Tyrrell said a hot air balloon will lift off from the infield at 6 p.m.

“On Saturday, we have invited former fair queens from the 1950s and ‘60s. We haven’t had a fair queen since sometime in the ‘60s, possibly ’65,” she said. “They are excited about coming back. At some point, they’ll gather in the hospitality tent for a group picture.”

Tyrrell said a talent show is planned for 4-6 p.m., also on Saturday, on the home arts stage. She said, so far, the committee doesn’t have anything planned for closing day, Sept. 9.

In addition to the special events, there will be 17-inch galvanized steel windmills for sale in the FFA area. The fair’s logo incorporates a windmill. Among souvenirs offered will be a 16-month calendar with pictures from past fairs, as well as some of the fair’s history.

“Some of the superintendents are planning special things in their areas, too,” Tyrrell said. “A lot of things are still in the works, but that’s just a quick rundown of what we have planned so far.”

Fair board secretary Nancy Rex said the fair was established to showcase agricultural products and to provide opportunities to see what’s new in agriculture. She said the fair has maintained that tradition, and continues to boast a large livestock competition each year.

An old-fashioned agricultural fair, always open the Wednesday-Sunday after Labor Day, the Sandwich Fair is the last county fair in northern Illinois. Spread over more than 170 shaded acres, the grounds are home to a number of historic buildings.

Along with livestock judging and other agricultural events, the fair offers a large midway with carnival rides from mild to wild; harness races; home-cooked foods prepared by a number of civic, church and school groups; home arts exhibits; and a variety of family entertainment.

In 1902, the Sandwich Free Press printed this description of the event: “The fair is a good, clean, live show from start to finish. Gambling fakes are cut out, booze is tabooed and the fairgrounds are properly the place for family reunions.”

Admission is reasonable, with season tickets available, parking is always free and the fair board continues the tradition of no alcohol on the property today.