History of the Decatur Celebration

In 1985, Fred Puglia, the creator and original producer of the Springfield-based festival LincolnFest, was attempting to sell his community festival idea to numerous cities throughout Illinois. He had just finished his tenure with the Springfield festival and was looking for a new city in which to start another festival. Included in his search were Champaign, Bloomington, Peoria, and a few others. Puglia spent nearly six months pitching his ideas to cities in the area, but everywhere he went, he got the same response; nobody wanted to take on the huge undertaking of such an event. The City of Decatur was suggested to him before, but Puglia hadn’t given it much thought. Decatur was in a recession of sorts, with labor troubles and other problems giving the city a less-than-attractive image. In addition, Puglia was looking for more of a “white collar” town in which to make a home for his new festival. Even though the city did not fit the demographics Puglia was looking for, he decided to give Decatur a shot. In February 1986, Decatur was given its chance to make history.

Puglia presented his vision to the city’s leaders. He first approached Mayor Gary Anderson about the idea of having a festival thrown in the city streets that would be absolutely free to everyone who attended. Mayor Anderson loved the idea, believing an event like this was just what the city needed to boost morale within the community. After winning the Mayor’s approval, Puglia was invited to the City Council meeting to further explain his ideas. According to Puglia, it was one of the toughest, yet one of the most gratifying meetings he had ever participated in. During the meeting, a committee was appointed to work with the Mayor and Puglia to see if this dream could become a reality. This committee was made up of the Mayor, two City Council members, two community leaders, and Puglia. Within a few weeks, a rough plan was placed in front of the council and approved with a target date set for the first weekend in August to avoid possible conflicts with other events happening around the city and area. The leaders who participated in the early planning sessions were later appointed to the Board of Directors of the festival, and would also be recognized by the community as the true founding fathers of the Celebration (Mayor Anderson, Orv Graham & Jim Masey).

The next few months would prove to be quite hectic. Puglia contacted many corporate sponsors, only to be turned down by most in fear that the event would not be as popular as Puglia had presented it. Most were skeptical, at best, to get involved with such a “crazy” idea. This made for a very tight budget to get the ball rolling. He also was faced with a very short amount of time to bring everything together. The next few months would be spent booking entertainment, talking to city officials regarding numerous ordinance changes, forming a non-profit corporation (Decatur Celebration, Inc.), recruiting a small army of volunteers that would be needed for the first-ever event to be held in the downtown area, and finding local volunteers to donate great amounts of time and energy to make the festival work. By the time the first Decatur Celebration had arrived, Puglia had not secured enough sponsorships or city-backed money to cover the nearly $75,000 in costs to produce the festival. The rest of the money needed just to break even, would have to come from food and beverage sales during the event, since there would be no admission charged. As August approached, not only the festival, but also Puglia’s dreams were hinged on the outcome of three short days.

As it turned out, the first year was quite a success. An estimated 125,000 people packed the downtown streets of Decatur on August 1, 2, and 3, 1986. The weather was perfect. The timing was perfect. And the enthusiasm from the public was overwhelming (perfect). It was, as Mayor Anderson predicted, exactly what the city needed – a boost to its pride. The festival was planned to attract a good cross-section of the community. There was something for everyone. Fourteen (14) blocks contained 8 stages, 40 arts and crafts vendors, and a variety of street performers. A carnival, a separate children’s area, and a parade were part of bringing people from all walks of life together that first year. As a result, revenues from the three-day event were more than enough to cover the expenses the first year, leaving some cash to start planning for Celebration #2. And according to the public’s response, a second Decatur Celebration was inevitable.

The success of the first few years has enabled the festival to grow year after year. Word of the Celebration quickly spread throughout the region. More people wanted to see what the event was all about, more vendors wanted to participate, and more sponsors wanted to invest money in the now-successful event. In its second year, attendance grew to 150,000 people and the American Bus Association selected Decatur Celebration as one of its “Top 100 Events in North America” after being nominated by the Illinois Bureau of Tourism. Many people who have been involved since the festival’s inception agree the excitement and energy of the first two years are what transformed the festival into what today is billed “Illinois’ largest free family street festival.”

The following graph, taken from the Decatur Celebration Sponsorship Overview, outlines the history of attendance at the festival. As the graph indicates, annual attendance grew rapidly during the first six years of the festival. This growth was brought on by an increase in the physical size of the festival, an increase in the marketing budget enabling the festival to target markets outside the immediate area, and continued success every year making more people want to participate in the event. All of these changes were made possible by the success of the first few years. Had the festival not been successful and not made money the first year, the public would not have wanted to come back the following year; thus, the festival would not have had the money to expand every year.