HOPE, Ark. - COVID-19 Pandemic concerns have canceled yet another event in the Texarkana area: the 44th annual Hope Watermelon Festival.
The Hope-Hempstead County Chamber of Commerce decided to cancel the festival, according to a Facebook page post by the Hope chamber and news outlets. The festival is one of the yearly favorites in this area as an annual celebration of Hope's connection to all things watermelon.
The festival was scheduled for Aug. 6-8 with arts and crafts, food vendors, civic club dinners, live music and other forms of entertainment, including a car show, Watermelon Idol, Watermelon Olympics. the Watermelon 5K Run/Walk, Kidz Zone, baggo tournament and more.
Watermelon seed spitting and watermelon eating contests are traditional favorites, providing ample opportunity for photographs and summertime fun. This year a Saturday night Rock n' Roll Fest was planned, and the festivities often include a well known country music performer.
According to a history of the Hope Watermelon Festival at the chamber of commerce website, watermelons themselves "have long been a calling card for the City of Hope," with festival roots stretching back to the 1920s when a one-day event was held annually. Back then, locals served cold watermelon to train passengers passing through town.
Over the years, Hope has been known for its gargantuan, record-topping watermelons grown by local farmers.
"These early festivals brought upwards of 20,000 people in a day to Hope. The end to the first festivals came about 1931 when the city, suffering from the effects of the depression, could no longer accommodate the crowds," the history reads.
Later, in 1977, the watermelon festival restarted and has since grown to draw roughly the same number of visitors over a three-day stretch.
(For more information, visit facebook.com/hopearkchamberofcommerce or hopemelonfest.com )