The Prairie Arts Center and Studio K Architecture will present the fourth annual LEGO competition as part of this year’s Bureau County Homestead Festival in Princeton.

Two years after Illinois became the first state in the nation to eliminate cash bail, the Trump administration is threatening to revoke federal funding from local and state governments that allow cashless bail.The Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice condemned the action.

A Colorado man could face up to five years in prison if convicted of threatening seven public officials in Bureau and Marshall counties.

Check out photos taken on Saturday, Aug. 23, 2025, at the 170th annual Bureau County Fair in Princeton. The day featured carnival rides, food, Power Wheels Kids Demo Derby, regular Demolition Derby music and more.

U.S. Rep. Underwood discusses redistricting and Israel-Hamas conflict at DeKalb town hall.

Wanniarachchi will offer several general podiatry services, as well as specializing in advanced foot and ankle and wound care, according to a news release.

Liberty Village of Princeton recently hosted a back-to-school supply drive at its campus, collecting donations over the past several weeks.

Country Music star Trace Adkins performed at the 170th annual Bureau County Fair on Thursday. It was Adkins second time performing at the Bureau County Fair after first appearing in 2005. Thousands of people gathered to watch his concert. The fair runs through Sunday with family fun all weekend long.

Evangelical Covenant Church, Princeton, will host a free movie and root beer float event at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 6 in the church parking lot, 24 N. Main St.

Johnsons Carpet Shoppe in Princeton is adding furniture to its inventory.

Ten Veterans were honored during a Quilts of Valor Tribute to Veterans ceremony on Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025, at the Bureau County Fair in Princeton. Quilts of Valor was founded in 2003 by Catherine Roberts, who had a dream where a soldier who was distressed was comforted by a quilt. In 2003, quilter Roberts started the movement that became Quilts of Valor when her son was deployed in Iraq. Since that time, more than 400,000 quilts have been awarded. The local group, Illinois Valley Quilts of Valor, awarded 189 quilts in 2024 and has given more than 800 quilts since its start in April 2017.

Preparations underway as the 170th annual Bureau County Fair kicks off, featuring rides and performances. The fair welcomes Country Music star Trace Adkins on Thursday, tractor pulls on Friday, followed by a demolition derby on Saturday. Sunday, is free admission for all.

Both full-time temporary and hourly on-call positions are available to help maintain more than 45,000 lane miles statewide during the winter months, according to IDOT.

Oswego Village President Ryan Kauffman moderated the town hall, which was part of Underwood’s summer town hall series. The congresswoman has three more scheduled over the next week in DeKalb, LaSalle and Bureau counties.

The Bureau County Fair, Illinois’ longest running fair, returns to the fairgrounds at 811 W. Peru St. from Wednesday through Sunday, Aug. 20–24.

Severe thunderstorms with the risk for damaging winds and even tornadoes could hit northern Illinois on Monday afternoon and evening, the National Weather Service warned.

Two firefighters were taken to a Princeton medical center after a three-alarm fire at the Washington Mills facility in Hennepin, where a transformer fire resulted in a three-alarm response.

The event is open to the public, with additional parking available in the gravel lot at Beck’s.

Dr. Susan Buchanan of the University of Illinois Chicago School of Public Health said lead found in paint used inside older homes remains the primary source of lead exposure for children

A free workshop on the Mediterranean diet will be held Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025, from 5 to 6 p.m. at the Walnut Public Library.

Catch up on the week’s top Illinois Valley news and sports in minutes. Hear the week’s 5 most popular stories, read aloud for you

The town hall meeting at Oswego High School is part of her summer town hall series.

On Tuesday, the Bureau County Board approved an outside counsel to file a consent order to settle with two solar farms located just north of the Village of Ladd near Ladd Elevator at the intersection of Illinois Route 89 and 1800 North Road. The full board will likely vote to approve the project at the September meeting.

The Bureau County Courthouse will begin a modernization and elevator repair project beginning on Tuesday, Sept. 2, Bureau County Sheriff Jim Reed said in a news release.

A new event has been planned for the 170th annual Bureau County Fair in Princeton: a tractor show from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 24. 

The Princeton Junior Woman’s Club Baby Contest has received two new entries for 2025.

The production opens at 7 p.m. Friday to Saturday, Aug. 22-23 and 2 p.m. Sunday, Aug.24, at Putnam County Community High School.

Read the transcript from our interview: Trace Adkins is coming to the Bureau County Fair, and spoke with Dani Holland ahead of his visit

Shaw Local Radio’s Dani Holland interviews country music superstar Trace Adkins as Adkins prepares to play at the Bureau County Fair on August 21 in Princeton

The University of Illinois Extension will host two upcoming cooking workshops focused on planning and preparing quick, healthy meals using seasonal ingredients, according to a U of I news release.

The Princeton American Legion Auxiliary 125 will be meeting at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 13, at the Legion Post at 1549 W. Peru St.

The city of Henry and the Chief Senachwine Chapter NSDA are set to unveil an Abraham Lincoln historical marker at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 23, at Henry’s City Park.

Online voting is available through Venmo to @P-Juniors-71. Voters must include the baby’s name in the “What’s it for?” line. Venmo votes will be accepted until noon on Thursday, Sept. 4.

Hall Township Food Pantry will distribute food 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Aug. 16 at 500 N. Terry St., Spring Valley to individuals and families in need.  

Scattered showers and thunderstorms could bring heavy downpours Monday evening capable of causing localized flooding across Will, Kankakee and Grundy counties.

Bureau County Farm Bureau will host preventive health screenings from 6 to 9 a.m. on Friday, August 22nd, at its office at 1407 N. Main St. in Princeton.

Protesters gathered on Saturday, Aug. 9, 2025, at Rotary Park in Princeton to stand against President Donald Trump's policies. Check out these photos by MaKade Rios.

Illinois residents could pay hundreds more for their marketplace insurance plans in 2026, said U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood, D-Naperville, to dozens of constituents Saturday.

The following property transfers were recently recorded at the Bureau County Recorder of Deeds’ office in the Bureau County Courthouse.

U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood, D-Naperville, visited with dozens of constituents Saturday at East Aurora High School as part of her August touring town hall, where she addressed questions on topics from health insurance to the Israel-Hamas War.

Princeton Junior Woman’s Club Baby Contest has received its next six entries for 2025.

The following property transfers were recorded between July 1 and July 15, 2025, at the Bureau County Recorder of Deeds’ office in the Bureau County Courthouse.

Community leaders and residents gathered to celebrate the grand opening of the Spring Valley Community Center on Thursday, Aug. 7, 2025.

The Voluntary Action Center of Northern Illinois will host an open house from 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 13, at the new facility located at 1702 Fourth St. in Peru.

The La Moille Lions Club will host its chicken dinner from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 14, at 308 Howard St.

These marriage licenses were recently recorded at the Bureau County Courthouse.

U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood told a crowd at a Joliet town hall that she’s received no response from top federal officials regarding a report of a “reckless” immigration enforcement incident in the city. 

Payton Frueh of Ohio, Ill. competed in the 2025 Illinois State Fair Jr. Horse Show Versatility Contest held on Friday, July, 25 in Springfield. Frueh and her gelding, Cooper, won four of the five events and took home the Championship in Jr. Versatility.

Kathy Ballard is the 2025 recipient of the Betty Pretzsch Memorial Volunteer Award given to a 5-year member of the Friends of Princeton Public Library. She has been a member of the Friends of Princeton Public Library since 2016.

U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood, D-Naperville, will host a series of town halls in every county in Illinois’ 14th District this month, her office announced Friday.