Railsplitting Festival in Lincoln will try to break world record of Abe lookalikes

This weekend’s 49th annual Abraham Lincoln National Railsplitting Festival in Lincoln, Illinois, will attempt to break a world record for the most people dressed as Honest Abe in one place.

According to a news release about the Sept. 21-22 festival:

The public is invited by the Logan County Tourism Bureau to help break the World Record for the largest gathering of people dressed as Abe Lincoln at the Logan County Courthouse (601 Broadway) on Sept. 21. Registration for the event will take place across the street from the courthouse at the Lincoln Art Institute (112 S. McLean St.). Registration will be from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., with the event starting at 3 p.m. All participants to qualify in the attempt must have the following: stovepipe top hat, an ear to ear beard without a mustache, black suit with a long coat and white collared shirt, black waistcoat and black bow tie. Each person must be instantly recognizable as Abraham Lincoln.

Geoff Ladd, a longtime Route 66 advocate who wrote the news release, stated in an email he believed the current record-holder was 250 Abe Lincolns, but he didn’t have the exact details.

Other events during the Railsplitting Festival will occur at Postville Courthouse State Historic Site, Postville Park, VFW Post 1756, Logan County Courthouse and The Mill Museum — all on Route 66. Here are some of the things going on:

  • Women’s Firewood Split
  • Log Rolling Contest
  • Cross-Cut Saw Competition
  • Team Railsplitting Contest
  • Junior Railsplitting Contest
  • Amateur Railsplitting Contest
  • Community Church Service
  • Dean Tibbs Tomahawk Throw
  • Ray Begolka Corn Shelling Contest
  • Water Boil Contest
  • Re-christening of the City Lincoln
  • National Railsplitting Contest
  • Car Cruise-In

Details and a schedule for the events may be found at the festival’s website.

More about the origins of the Railsplitting Festival:

The roots of the Railsplitting Festival began in 1970 at Jerry’s Drive-In on Woodlawn Road, Lincoln, Illinois. Daris Knauer met with the co-chairman of tourism of the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce, LeRoy Buckheit. LeRoy was “flipping burgers” in his restaurant as they talked about an event because there was a busload of people in the restaurant. Daris had an idea about holding an event that was related to Abraham Lincoln’s days in Logan County. LeRoy mentioned they should name the event the “Railsplitter” because Abe Lincoln was known for splitting rails. One of the most famous festival visitors was President Gerald Ford, who made a campaign stop in 1976 and split a rail while he was at the event. Next year, special plans are already underway for the landmark 50th anniversary of the festival.

UPDATE 9/24/2019: The number of Abe impersonators fell well short of the record. Morgan Gleason wrote from the scene:

We ended up having 76 participants. Even though we didn’t break the record I am very happy with the great turn out and support. We had participants from Tennessee, Florida, Peoria, Springfield, Chicago, Decatur, Lincoln and people from throughout Logan County!

Here is her photo of all those Abes:

(Image of Abe Lincoln impersonators during the 2005 dedication of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum in Springfield, Illinois, by Randy von Liski via Flickr)

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