By CINDY  LADAGE
Illinois Correspondent

PETERSBURG, Ill. — At this year’s annual Petersburg Harvest Fest Sept. 17-18, an array of vendors were set up, and it also featured a children’s game and a parade that lasted just shy of an hour. Vintage Ag Assoc. tractor club members brought their tractors to drive them through the parade that circled Petersburg’s historic square.

Like many Illinois towns, Petersburg claims common roots with Honest Abe. The town’s website shared that Petersburg is a town rich with a history that dates back to 1833, when George Warburton and Peter Lukins, friends of Abraham Lincoln, founded Petersburg. Lincoln surveyed the town in 1835-36.

In 1840, many of the New Salem residents moved into Petersburg and New Salem ceased to exist. Those residents were responsible for the birth and growth of Petersburg. The site also mentions that the grave of Ann Rutledge, Lincoln’s sweetheart during his New Salem days, is buried at Oakland Cemetery just south of Petersburg.

The Fall Harvest was on the square surrounding the Menard County Courthouse, but Hill Prairie Winery was one of the places where many visitors stopped to buy a bottle of local vino. Located in nearby Oakford, the winery offers live entertainment on the weekends and boasts more than 15 award-winning wines (along with beer and soft drinks) by the glass or the bottle.

The winery is a former farm with rolling hills, ponds, a 100-year-old barn, windmill and acres of grapes. Visitors can tour the winery and watch the winemaking process.

There was plenty of food on-site at the Harvest Fest, too. Vose Concessions was on hand with its famous corndogs. This is an Illinois State Fair staple; this neck of the woods is famous for corn dogs, in fact. Springfield native Ed Waldmire created the “Cozy Dog” at the 1946 fair.

There was also a farmers’ market where visitors could get their fall pumpkin, gourd or Indian corn.

Whether a visitor looked for produce, bought a book written by a local author (such as Tish Cook’s When You Speak My Name) or purchased jewelry from Rose Hammitt’s selections or woven treasures from Shelly Wilcoxsin, there was something for everyone at this year’s festival.