LEON — Join in on good old-fashioned fun Saturday at the Leon Town Picnic and learn about the town’s claim to fame — the Pennyroyal Racetrack.

Hosted by Leon’s historical society, fire company and auxiliary, fire commissioners and town board, the free event is open to Leon residents past and present as well as the general public and anyone connected to Leon.

The event begins at the fire hall on New Albion Road at noon, with food served about 1 p.m. Barbecued chicken and hot dogs will be provided, but attendees are asked to bring a dish to pass.

There will be mouthwatering pies for dessert, with many slices coming from the entries of the Pie Baking Contest that will include cash prizes of first place, $25; second, $15; and third, $10. Entrants are asked to bring their donated pie to the fire hall by 11:30 a.m. for judging that will take place at noon.

Other highlights include a huge Wine and Cheese Basket Raffle, a 50/50 Raffle, a door prize and cards. People of all ages will find a variety of activities to enjoy, including games and a sawdust pit for kids, along with pickleball, Cornhole and horseshoes for adults.

Historical society member Myra Johnston said they are doing a huge Wine and Cheese Basket Raffle instead of the usual assortment of smaller raffle items.

“Besides cheese and wine, the basket has raffle tickets, gift certificates, lottery tickets, a handmade cheese board, crackers and all kinds of stuff,” she said. “The door prize is a handmade afghan made by Donna Snyder.”

Johnston said artist Karen Beckman of Florida has donated two beautiful paintings of the Pennyroyal Racetrack to the historical society that will be on display at the picnic and afterward at the 1836 Church in the center of Leon.

THE MAIN FEATURE of the event will be people sharing memories of the Pennyroyal, and anyone who is interested in the historical track or would like to learn about it.

At their 2016 picnic, residents celebrated the 70th anniversary of the racetrack and its famous connection to NASCAR that put their community on the map many years ago. The once popular racetrack was the springboard for NASCAR winners the late Bill Rexford of Conewango Valley and the late Lloyd Moore of Frewsburg. To this day, Rexford is still the youngest driver to win a championship in what has become the Sprint Cup series at the age of 23.

According to Fred Milliman, curator of the Leon Historical Society Museum, the Pennyroyal Racetrack was built in 1870 as a horse track along Eldridge Road. It sat empty until members of the Leon Fire Company decided to resurrect the track for autos in 1946. The dirt track drew racers from across the state, Canada, Western Pennsylvania and beyond for about a decade and was attended by 1,200-2,000 spectators at each event.

Until 1960, when racing there dwindled because of bigger tracks, bigger purses and bigger crowds elsewhere, it was considered the fastest half-mile track in Western New York. The site is now occupied by an Amish farm, but visitors can still see where the track was, and a sign marks the location on the corner of Eldredge and Town Hill roads.

Johnston said the historical society invited the still-living drivers to the picnic in 2016, where they interviewed them and put their experiences on a DVD. Created by videographer Don Veith of Cattaraugus, the film can be seen at the museum.

“The former drivers talked about the great times they had at the racetrack,” she said. “Sadly, all of the drivers that participated in that interview have since passed. There are still a few men alive that were involved with the track — Ken Both of the North Collins area and Lou Ellsworth of Allegany, who was a photographer for the track.”

A big, new display featuring 100 framed, reproduction photos is at the museum located in the former grange hall along Route 62. Johnston said the originals are put away for protection and safekeeping.

Johnston said the Pennyroyal presentations and exhibits were made possible by a $2,500 grant from the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation and volunteers. She said the programs and events are all leading up to the racetrack’s 80th anniversary next year.

“I’m not sure, yet, how we will celebrate Pennyroyal’s 80th anniversary in 2026, but it will be similar to this year’s series of presentations with more speakers. There’s a lot more that can be talked about,” she said. “We have the NASCAR connection. That’s a thing all of its own. One of Bill Rexford’s sons sent us an article that describes the whole thing and we’ll be talking about that at our next presentation in October.”

Donations are welcome, and all proceeds go to the Leon Town Picnic Fund.

The historical society will host its next Pennyroyal presentation, “Where Some NASCAR Drivers and Winners Started – Driving to Fame,” at 2 p.m. Oct. 11 at the church located at the four corners in Leon. For more information, visit leonhistoricalsociety.weebly.com or Facebook.