By Stan Schwartz
If you were ever trying to figure out what pulling out all the stops really means, then you had to be in Vandalia last Friday and Saturday for Prairie Days.
What the Vandalia Area Chamber of Commerce and the Vandalia Area Historical Society were able to accomplish for the town’s Prairie Days event was truly magnificent. Making this celebration even more special was that this was the second part of Vandalia’s Sesquicentennial. Members of these two organizations and countless others made this Prairie Days celebration exceptionally memorable.
There was something for everyone who came to help with the celebration. Leaning heavily on the town’s historical place in Missouri’s history, various aspects of Vandalia were brought to life—in photos, in tours, in voices from the past, and in people’s hearts.
Several streets around Vandalia’s Railroad Park were blocked off so that those attending could walk freely from one place to another without worrying about traffic. It also provided room for a large stage and a huge area for children’s activities.
Friday evening, there were horseshoe and cornhole tournaments. Lending their talents to the evening’s entertainment was the SoulRoot Band.
Saturday’s events began early with a 5K run/walk starting from the Eastern Missouri YMCA and winding its way through town and back again. More than a dozen brave souls ventured out for the 7 a.m. start time, ready to kick off the day right with some brisk exercise. Cloudy skies and cool temperatures made the event “fun” for some.
The building and home tours started at 9 a.m. and ran through most of the day. Spots on the tour bus filled early. One woman said she arrived just a little too late to make reservations. But she was provided with a map of the town with the homes marked off on it.
Debbie Pederson, who came over from Bowling Green to join the fun, said she would take the tour on her own to see the homes.
“They weren’t going to go inside, so I can do this on my own time,” she said.
Vendors spaced themselves out along State Street, with most of the food trucks at the intersection of State and Main. If you were hungry, there was plenty to eat with a nice variety.
The parade started at 11 a.m. and was filled with floats depicting the town’s history.
During the Charter Day Celebration back in August, local barber, Harold Williams, dressed as Aaron McPike, to welcome everyone and provide some “first person” accounts of the founding of Vandalia. He reprised his McPike role for the Prairie Days celebration.
By Saturday, he said, he had memorized his speech from August and was able to speak “off the cuff,” giving all the newcomers a taste of what Vandalia was like 150 years ago.
The South Fork Regulators rolled into town to put on a couple of Old West style gunfights. They routinely do re-enactments during Mexico’s Walk Back In Time event.
The kid’s area was filled with bounce houses and inflatable slides, a few games and a petting zoo. There were also a couple of mini trains go give rides around the park. A wagon full of corn kernels proved to be quite popular.
There was pumpkin painting and a scavenger hunt at the Historical Museum, as well as bingo under the tent in the parking lot.
A motorcycle and car-in cruise proved popular for young and old. There was plenty of well restored vehicles for everyone to enjoy.
Becky Denton took to the stage at 4:30 to entertain the audience who had gathered for the day’s concerts.
She kept the crowd engaged until it was time to fill the Time Capsule. People were asked during the Charter Day Celebration what should go in the capsule to be opened in 50 years during Vandalia’s 200th anniversary. Among the items Paul Ray showed the audience was a 150th banner that numerous people had signed that day. Even more people signed it during Prairie Days. He estimated about 200 signatures were on the banner.
Ray wanted the younger people in the audience to keep these items in mind if they were around 50 years from now.
The highlight of the evening was Missouri’s own, Ruby Leigh. Last year she was runner up on “The Voice,” a singing competition show on national TV. This 17-year-old wowed the audience with a variety of songs, even asking for requests.
“If I know it, I’ll sing it for you,” she said.
It was easy to see how much she enjoyed performing for everyone. Earlier in the day, she had been walking around Railroad Park in a neon green suit with members of her family, greeting her fans and saying hi to everyone interested in speaking with her. She stayed after her show as well to make sure everyone got a chance to say hi.
She had an amazing performance, doing some of her own songs as well as singing covers of other artists.
People had arrived early to set up their own chairs in front of the bleachers brought in for the show. The crowd was building through the afternoon, and by show time, every inch of the area in front of the stage was filled.
Audrain County Sheriff’s Office brought in extra deputies to for the day and the evening events.
Leigh left the audience wanting more. This singing phenom has already played at the Grand Ol’ Opry and will be going back there again.
To finish out the day’s entertainment, The Cherry Pistols, took to the stage after 8 p.m., brining their brand of rock n’ roll to Vandalia.
A huge congratulations goes out to the Vandalia Chamber of Commerce and the Vandalia Area Historical Society for the effort they put into this celebration.
Editor’s note: To pull out all the stops literally, means to pull out every knob on a pipe organ, is to so that air is allowed to blast through every rank as the organist plays, which creates a powerful blast of sound. The saying has come to mean people who have put everything they have into getting something done.