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Edwardsville’s Route 66 Festival set to mark 25th anniversary on June 10

Dozens of sponsors, food and market vendors, performers and, of course, classic cars are lined up and ready to make this year’s 25th Annual Route 66 Festival an all-day celebration to remember. Festival events are scheduled from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday, June 10, 2023, in and near City Park in downtown Edwardsville. The festival celebrates Route 66, the iconic 2,440-mile trek that ran from Chicago to the Pacific Coast – and for several decades passed through Edwardsville.

This popular event will get underway at 8 a.m. Saturday, June 10, with the Metro Milers 10k run/walk. The festival kicks into high gear at 10 a.m., when the Roadside Marketplace opens for business with at least two dozen artisan and boutique vendors offering a variety of clothing, hand-crafted goods, pet-related items and more. Feed your appetite with selections from 10 food and beverage providers.

There’s fun for all ages in the family zone, with three face-painting artists, a caricature artist, bounce houses and a petting zoo. And don’t miss the performers, including a local showcase and bands from throughout the region – Midlife, the Matt Taul Band, Soul Cracker and the Well Hungarians — from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. A full schedule of performers and other events can be found at www.edwardsvilleroute66.com and on Facebook (@EdwardsvilleRouteSixtySix).

A special festival feature are historic trolley tours that will highlight some of Edwardsville’s Route 66 sights, including an Instagram-worthy monument, the revitalized West End Service Station (opening that weekend) and other sites. And it wouldn’t be a Route 66 Festival without classic cars: The Land of Goshen Rotary Club is once again hosting a car cruise along with a car show in the nearby Cassens Transport and MCT Park and Ride lots accessible from Kansas Street less than a block from the festival. Registration for the car show and cruise begins at 3 p.m.; the car show runs from 4 to 6 p.m. and the cruise starts promptly at 6:30 p.m.

The City of Edwardsville appreciates the support of its Route 66 Festival sponsors, who make the event possible:

The event’s Mother Road sponsor is Cork Tree Creative, a marketing agency local to the Edwardsville community.

The Hot Rod sponsors include:

  • i3 Broadband
  • Renewal by Andersen
  • Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc.

The Roadster sponsors are:

  • Byron Carlson Petri & Kalb LLC
  • Viviano Heating and Air Conditioning
  • GCS Credit Union
  • Madison Mutual Insurance Co.
  • Edwardsville Bank
  • Phillips 66 Wood River Refinery
  • Republic Services
  • Sivia Law
  • Busey Bank
  • BJ’s Printables

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