2024 marks the bicentennial celebration of Funk Farms, the fourth oldest farm in Illinois. The 200th anniversary will be marked by live music, education, food, shopping, and fun on Saturday, June 22, at Funk Farms, 5959 N 1100 East Road in Shirley, Illinois.
“This farm represents the history and the heritage of a family and of a man who had a vision, not just for himself but for generations ahead of him that he would never know,” said Brian Bangert, Funk Farms General Manager.
Isaac Funk founded Funk Farms in 1824 and accumulated 25,000 acres of Central Illinois prairie. Funk served in the Illinois General Assembly with Abraham Lincoln, who was the first attorney for the farm. Members of the Funk Family also included the Director of the Chicago Union Stockyards, a nationally known suffragette, and one of the first female lawyers in Chicago.
The McLean County family was instrumental in founding Illinois Wesleyan University and Northwestern University and created the first endowed professorship in Illinois history.
“The people who have made this farm’s wheels go round have maintained the philosophy that we take good care of all the moving parts every day and leave the land and our community better than we found it,” said Bangert. “We do that for ourselves, but most importantly for the future generations.”
The celebration will feature educational sessions throughout the day and a launch of a new book by author Chris Bodenner – “Pioneers Built from the Soil Up: How the Funk Family Shaped American History.”
Admission and parking are free for visitors between 10am and 5pm. A full schedule of events and a list of vendors are available by visiting funkfarms200.com.