July 16, 2025
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Boo Boo Days returns to Batavia to celebrate event’s 1956 roots with vintage flair

Event features sidewalk shopping deals, retro cocktail specials, mid-century décor

By Joey Weslo
The Batavia Depot Museum collected early photos of Boo Boo Days in Batavia, an annual sidewalk shopping spree. The event originated in 1956. This year, organizers are hosting an homage to those formative early years.

The Batavia Depot Museum collected early photos of Boo Boo Days in Batavia, an annual sidewalk shopping spree. The event originated in 1956. This year, organizers are hosting an homage to those formative early years. (Photo Provided By The Batavia Depot Museum)

With nostalgic waves rolling back the decades, Boo Boo Days is returning to Batavia, immersing visitors in the 1950’s and 1960’s sidewalk sales that evolved to embody the spirit of the community.

From July 11 to July 13, vintage storefront advertisements, retro cocktail specials, sidewalk bargains, and some dapper “Mad Men”-era costumed figures, will transport shoppers back to the suave era of Sinatra and vodka gimlets.

Batavia MainStreet is hosting the event, run in tandem with Batavia Park District’s Windmill City Festival which features live music, food vendors, carnival rides, and family fun near the Peg Bond Center.

“Boo Boo Days represents Batavia’s entrepreneurial spirit, local retailers coming together to offer unbeatable deals, delightful promotions, and a sense of community,” Kristen Desler, assistant director of Batavia MainStreet, said in a news release. “By reviving this promotion, we hope to spark nostalgia in longtime residents and give visitors a fresh, fun way to connect with the town’s history.”

The Boo Boo Days shopping event in Batavia became a staple annual event of the late 1950's, the 1960's, and the 1970's. Store owners would bring their clearance goods out to the sidewalk for a big shopping soiree.

The Boo Boo Days shopping event in Batavia became a staple annual event of the late 1950's, the 1960's, and the 1970's. Store owners would bring their clearance goods out to the sidewalk for a big shopping soiree. (Photo Provided By The Batavia Depot Museum)

The event originated in 1956, the year of Elvis Presley’s chart topping “Heartbreak Hotel,” as a modest sidewalk sale, before being monikered “Boo Boo Days” in 1978. The premise of the event was to provide small-town merchants an opportunity to showcase their clearance and overstock items. Add the summer weather, some artistic sidewalk flair, and the event quickly became a staple of the community.

This year, shopkeepers are displaying real vintage ads saved from the 1950’s and 1960’s in their colorful storefront windows. Displaying authentic ads for things such as a used car for “ONLY $19!” is designed to connect shoppers with the historical roots that helped Batavia flourish.

The year, the Boo Boo Day shopping event in Batavia is a throwback to the style and flair of the mid-century origins of the event. The Batavia Depot Museum collected early photos of the event showing shoppers visiting Batavia's storefronts.

The year, the Boo Boo Day shopping event in Batavia is a throwback to the style and flair of the mid-century origins of the event. The Batavia Depot Museum collected early photos of the event showing shoppers visiting Batavia's storefronts. (Photo Provided By The Batavia Depot Museum)

Participating shops will offer discount deals, clearance sales and throwback flair, including Wilson Street Mercantile, Batavia Boardwalk Shops, Special Occasions on the Avenue, 63rd Street Apothecary, Urban Apothecary, Fat Sam’s for Pets, The Tea Tree, Red Hive Market, The Instrument Exchange, Kiss the Sky, and Foltos Tonsorial Parlor.

Providing an intoxicating ambiance, retro cocktail specials inspired by classic mid-century sips will be offered at local hotspots.

Pal Joey’s, a nod to the 1957 film of the same name starring Frank Sinatra and Kim Novak, will offer vodka gimlets. Sturdy Shelter Brewing will offer Tom Collins cocktails. Other throwback drink offerings can be found at Gammon Coach House, Windmill Grille Pizzeria, Sidecar Supper Club, Grainology BrewStillery, and The GOAT Burger + Cocktail Bar.

To cap off the shopping soiree, attendees can buy $4 tickets to see the comedian Chris Roach at The Comedy Vault using the promo code BOOBOO4 at checkout. The shows are before the weekend event.

During the event, Batavia MainStreet will hold a contest, raffling off two free tickets to the upcoming Cocktails in the Park event on July 26.

To enter, post a photo of your Boo Boo Days purchase or your retro cocktails from one of the participating businesses and tag @downtownbatavia on Instagram or @Batavia MainStreet on Facebook.

“Whether you’re sipping a Vodka Gimlet, snagging a great deal, or posing with a 1960s-era storefront ad, show us how you’re enjoying Boo Boo Days in style,” Desler said in the release.

For more information, visit downtownbatavia.com or contact Batavia MainStreet at 630-761-3528 or email info@downtownbatavia.com.

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