# Event Details - **Event Name**: CarbonRail: Celebrating Carbondale's Role in American History - **Event Start and End Date**: Sat, 27 Jun, 2026 at 03:00 pm – Sat, 27 Jun, 2026 at 07:00 pm - **Event Description**: To honor and celebrate the first train's arrival into the City of Carbondale, on July 4, 1854, as well as to commemorate America’s 250th, the Historic Preservation Commission of Carbondale, along with the City of Carbondale and The Varsity Center, are hosting a special event on June 27, 2026 - “CarbonRail: Celebrating Carbondale’s Role in American History.” Programming for “CarbonRail” will begin at the SIMMS (Southern Illinois Multimodal Station) with a proclamation from the City and a brief musical performance from renowned cellist Bill Cernota (Lyric Opera of Chicago, SI Music Fest). Attendees are encouraged to come mingle and view the main lobby of the SIMMS at 3:00 PM, with the proclamation and music beginning at 3:30 PM. Immediately following, attendees are invited to make their way over to the historic Varsity Center for an evening of classic silent train films, live music, an educational panel discussion and entertaining demonstration on the history of Contra/Barn Dances, and the main feature - the debut of a new play “Full Steam Ahead”, that shares the story of the first train arriving in Carbondale on July 4, 1854. Featured Films: The following three films will be screened through the entirety of the evenings’ programming at The Varsity: The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat (August and Louis Lumière, 1896), The Great Train Robbery (Edwin S. Porter, 1903), The General (Buster Keaton & Clyde Bruckman, 1926). Admission for these films will be a nickel per viewer, a tongue-in-cheek admission fee, giving a nod to the nickelodeon theaters these would have been originally screened in. The three featured films will run back-to-back in two viewing blocks from 4:00-5:30, and again from 5:30-7:00. Guests are free to come and go as they please during these screenings. Live Entertainment- Music, Dance, and new play “Full Steam Ahead”: Kicking off live entertainment at The Varsity will be local musician Max Senteney, playing a clawhammer banjo set from 4:00-4:30 PM. Next will be the world premiere of the new play, “Full Steam Ahead”. Written by Ramsey Uhter and directed by Jim Phillips, this play will bring to life the celebration of the first train coming into Carbondale on July 4, 1854. There will be three performances at 4:30 PM, 5:30 PM, and 6:30 PM. The Southern Illinois Community Contra Dance group will lead a panel discussion on the history of barn dances from 5:00-5:30 PM followed by a demonstration of barn dance from 6:00-6:30, featuring live music once more from Max Senteney. Stop by First Christian Church that very Saturday, June 27, from 1-3:00 PM to see the “Migraciones Mobile Museum” and hear Paul Collins calling traditional barn dances- an event made available from a grant with Healing Illinois. Cont. Programming for the 86th Anniversary of The Varsity: Not only is this a celebration of 172 years since the first trains arrival into Carbondale, IL & 250 years since the Independence of the United States of America, but we will also be celebrating The Varsity’s 86th birthday! The Varsity had its very first film screening on June 27, 1940, with a viewing of “Our Town”. The Varsity will continue to celebrate later into the evening on June 27, 2026, with a special comedy production, Tom Kremmer’s Stand Up Mic Fight Comedy Competition Show. Full schedule of programming is as follows: 3-4:00 PM: Live Music & Proclamation at the SIMMS (Proclamation at 3:30) 4-4:30 PM: Clawhammer Banjo set from Max Senteney 4:30-5:00 PM: First performance of “Full Steam Ahead” 5-5:30 PM: Panel Discussion with Southern Illinois Community Contra Dance 5:30-6:00 PM: Second performance of “Full Steam Ahead” 6-6:30 PM: Demonstration with Southern Illinois Community Contra Dance 6:30-7:00 PM: Final performance of “Full Steam Ahead” 7:00 PM: Tom Kremmer’s Stand Up Mic Fight Comedy Competition Show Featured Films Screening Times (all three films screened back-to-back during these times): 4:00-5:30 PM – Block 1 5:30- 7:00 PM- Block 2 - **Event URL**: https://allevents.in/carbondale/carbonrail-celebrating-carbondales-role-in-american-history/200030211380349 - **Event Categories**: Entertainment, Music, Business, comedy, Contests, Festivals - **Interested Audience**: - total_interested_count: 126 ## Ticket Details ## Event venue details - **city**: Carbondale - **state**: IL - **country**: United States - **location**: 200 S. Illinois Ave. , Carbondale, IL, United States, Illinois 62901 - **lat**: 37.7258 - **long**: -89.21701 - **full address**: 200 S. Illinois Ave. , Carbondale, IL, United States, Illinois 62901 ## Event gallery - **Alt text**: CarbonRail: Celebrating Carbondale's Role in American History - **Image URL**: https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events5/banners/6d18b5b453e368919b512c8325be757ea998f7a2a5ea7fc0f6a5b13d873ecf8e-rimg-w1200-h1552-dc1a1714-gmir?v=1782411387 ## FAQs - **Q**: When and where is CarbonRail: Celebrating Carbondale's Role in American History being held? - **A:** CarbonRail: Celebrating Carbondale's Role in American History takes place on Sat, 27 Jun, 2026 at 03:00 pm to Sat, 27 Jun, 2026 at 07:00 pm at 200 S. Illinois Ave. , Carbondale, IL, United States, Illinois 62901. - **Q**: Who is organizing CarbonRail: Celebrating Carbondale's Role in American History ? - **A:** CarbonRail: Celebrating Carbondale's Role in American History is organized by City of Carbondale Government. - **Q**: Who is this event for? Is it right for me? - **A:** CarbonRail: Celebrating Carbondale's Role in American History is ideal for live music fans, concert-goers, and anyone who enjoys unforgettable performances from their favorite artists in an electric live atmosphere. Whether you're a first-time attendee or a longtime enthusiast in Carbondale, this event is thoughtfully curated to deliver a standout experience worth every moment. With 120+ people already showing interest, this is clearly an event worth adding to your calendar - don't miss out. ## Structured Data (JSON-LD) ```json [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Event", "name": "CarbonRail: Celebrating Carbondale's Role in American History", "image": "https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events5/banners/6d18b5b453e368919b512c8325be757ea998f7a2a5ea7fc0f6a5b13d873ecf8e-rimg-w1200-h1552-dc1a1714-gmir?v=1782411387", "startDate": "2026-06-27", "endDate": "2026-06-27", "url": "https://allevents.in/carbondale/carbonrail-celebrating-carbondales-role-in-american-history/200030211380349", "location": { "@type": "Place", "name": "200 S. Illinois Ave. , Carbondale, IL, United States, Illinois 62901", "address": { "@type": "PostalAddress", "streetAddress": "200 S Illinois Ave, Carbondale, IL 62901-2918, United States", "addressLocality": "Carbondale", "addressRegion": "IL", "addressCountry": "US" }, "geo": { "@type": "GeoCoordinates", "latitude": "37.7258", "longitude": "-89.21701" } }, "eventAttendanceMode": "https://schema.org/OfflineEventAttendanceMode", "description": "To honor and celebrate the first train's arrival into the City of Carbondale, on July 4, 1854, as well as to commemorate America’s 250th, the Historic Preservation Commission of Carbondale, along with the City of Carbondale and The Varsity Center, are hosting a special event on June 27, 2026 - “Carb", "organizer": [ { "@type": "Organization", "name": "City of Carbondale Government", "url": "https://allevents.in/org/city-of-carbondale-government/12064468", "description": "The City of Carbondale is an innovative, distinctive, university community that welcomes visitors and provides high-quality services to its residents. \n\n" } ] } ] ```