Clothesline Fair Comes To Town

The Prairie Grove Lions Club, the Arts Center of the Ozarks and Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park invite you to attend the 66th Annual Clothesline Fair over the Labor Day weekend. The fair opens Saturday, Sept. 2, and runs through Monday, Sept. 4.

One of the oldest arts and crafts festivals in Arkansas, the Clothesline Fair has something for everyone.

Craft vendor tents, sponsored by the Arts Center of the Ozarks, will open at 8:30 a.m. and close at 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, and will operate from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Labor Day. More than 100 craft booths will feature artisans selling, displaying, and demonstrating their handmade wares.

Food trucks and various drink concessions will be open all day, each day of the event. In addition, there will be square dancing, antique farm equipment displays and musical entertainment.

Hindman Hall Museum & Visitor Center will be open daily and free of charge from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. The museum features interactive exhibits, artifacts, and videos, along with the park gift shop and restrooms. Park grounds, picnic areas, and restrooms are open daily from 8 a.m. until dark.

The Clothesline Fair is free to the public. The state park charges a $5 parking fee each day.

The annual Clothesline Fair Parade starts at 9 a.m. Saturday. The parade, sponsored by Prairie Grove Area Chamber of Commerce, starts at the middle school, goes through downtown and ends at Battlefield State Park.

After the parade, SCV and SUV groups will commence a “Changing of the Flags” in the state park’s Memorial Yard. Members of the Rustic Relics Club will display a variety of antique tractors and other farming equipment throughout the fair with special demonstrations each day of the festival.

Each day, a living historian will be in the Latta Kitchen from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., demonstrating pioneer life in the Ozarks during the Civil War era. Gospel music is the featured program on Sunday starting at 1 p.m. The musical line-up will feature southern gospel music groups from the surrounding communities.

Activities will move to the amphitheater at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday as an evening of square dancing exhibitions kicks off. Children ages 4-11 will open the square dancing festivities, followed by competitive dancing by older children and youth at 7 p.m. All groups will dance again on Monday starting at 2:30 p.m. The final square dance competition will begin at 7 p.m. on Monday, with the winning group announced at the end of the evening.

The Clothesline Fair at Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park is part of “Arkansas State Parks Legacy Week.” It’s a week all about Arkansas State Parks, celebrating and carrying out our mission to enrich Arkansas culture and protect valuable resources for the benefit of the public. This year’s Legacy Week theme is “Uncover the Legacy.” Arkansas State Parks exists as a conservation agency, protecting special places and fostering resource appreciation through high-quality educational programs. Come discover your heritage — your story — at Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park.

For more information contact Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park at 479-846-2990 or by e-mail at prairiegrove@arkansas.com. Be sure to check us out on the web at www.arkansasstateparks.com/prairiegrovebattlefield for a full list of park events.

For more information about the crafts show, contact Arts Center of the Ozarks, 479-751-5441, or visit the ACO web site http://www. acozarks.org.

Ann Morningstar of Fayetteville looks over baskets at the Basket Sensations booth at the Clothesline Fair last year. Coming to the fair is a tradition for her, she said.