Putnam County is bringing the thunder again this year -- as well as a water fight, a car show and a folk band in a historic location.
The annual Independence Day celebration in Hennepin Park has been a blast for 40 years, literally, with the highlight of the day being the "thunder on the Illinois" annual fireworks show, which typically begins between 9:30 and 9:40 p.m., depending on the daylight.
"We have a pretty unique location," event organizer Quentin Buffington told Illinois Valley Times. "Hennepin sits in the middle of a little bowl, and fireworks are shot off across the river at a grain elevator, which is at river level."
Hennepin is 90 feet above the river level, offering spectators a different look than most fireworks displays: across rather than up.
"Because of the terrain there, the booms and the blasts echo, so that's why we go with the 'thunder on the Illinois' -- cause it reverberates on the river, and you can kind of feel it," Buffington said.
Besides the usual Fourth fare, like food and fun, the county is also offering a car show from noon to 4 p.m, after which The Templetons folk music group will perform at the Putnam County Courthouse.
Built in 1839, the courthouse is not only the oldest one in use in Illinois, but also boasts that Abraham Lincoln once walked its halls when he worked as a lawyer.
Also during the day, Robert Judd will be honored as Citizen of the Year, and a $1,100 donation will be given in his name to the Putnam County Educational Foundation, which organizes extracurricular activities for schoolchildren.
"This is what an American 4th of July should look like," Buffington said.
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