Geography Dept.KANKAKEE is the county seat of Kankakee County, Illinois. It is located approxiamtely 60 miles south of Chicago, Illinois. GPS coordinates are: 41° 7' 18.87" N, 87° 51' 38.72" W.This Bird's Eye View map detail from 1869 shows the Kankakee Fairgrounds (#6) in the distance on the edge of town. That's the Illinois Central R.R. in the bottom left corner.Old Fair Park and Mound Grove Cemetery now occupy the land where the Kankakee Fair Grounds of 1869 once stood.Picture Gallery.The western most part of the old fairgrounds is occupied today by a playground and basketball courts.In its hay day the Old Fairgrounds was alive with entertainment and HORSES!Racing Results.
|
History Dept.The Kankakee County Fair was first held in 1856, in an open space in
the timber known as Cobb's woods, which is today known as Riverview
Historic District. It is unknown when the fairgounds was relocated to
the area shown on the Bird's Eye view map of 1869. On August 28th,
1890 the great stallion Nelson trotted a mile against time in 2:11 1/2,
surpassing the record of Axtell, to become the fastest trotter ever!
|
|
Read all about it in THE ILLINOIS TROTTING CHRONICLES! |