Washington County Enterprise-Leader
Clothesline Fair Is On The 2021 Calendar
SQUARE DANCING: FULL SPEED AHEAD
“We want to move forward as if last year didn’t happen.” Casey Copeland Lions Club President
PRAIRIE GROVE — Whether it’s called the 69th Clothesline Fair or the 70th Clothesline Fair, it’s a go for the annual event over Labor Day weekend at Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park.
Casey Copeland, president of Prairie Grove Lions Club, said the group unanimously voted at its March 2 meeting to host the Clothesline Fair this year. The Lions Club canceled the 2020 fair because of covid-19 concerns and restrictions in place by the Arkansas Department of Health.
“We want to move forward as if last year didn’t happen,”
Copeland said.
Copeland said the Lions Club does not anticipate any significant health restrictions will be in place in September, but if any are in place because of the coronavirus, the club will adhere to those guidelines.
Last year’s Clothesline Fair would have been the 69th annual event. If the 2020 fair had occurred, then the Lions Club would be planning the 70th fair. Copeland said he’s not sure which number to use.
“So this will be the 69th one or the 70th one, depending on how you count it,” Copeland said.
One change this year is that the Lions Club is taking over the crafts portion of the Clothesline Fair. Arts Center of the Ozarks in Springdale has organized the craft vendors in the past.
“Over the past few years, we’ve come to the conclusion that our arrangement with the Arts Center was not as beneficial to us as it should be,” Copeland said last week. “We had decided we wanted to coordinate the craft vendors ourselves.”
Last year, the Arts Center expressed its desire to cancel the Clothesline Fair much earlier in the year because of covid-19, before the Lions Club was ready to make its own decision. Copeland said it appeared to be an appropriate time to go ahead and end the relationship with the center.
The Lions Club’s handling of the crafts “might look a little different,” but Copeland said the plan is to place regular vendors in their usual places and to try to have a normal Clothesline Fair.
Copeland told Prairie Grove City Council that applications already are coming in from vendors, and “it looks like it will be a pretty decent event.”
For the 2021 fair, the Lions Club hopes to add more music on Saturday and Monday, along with the traditional gospel music on Sunday.
“We’ve always talked about how to bring in more music on Saturday and Monday to add to the atmosphere of the fair,” Copeland said.
Craig Battles, who oversees square dancing for the Clothesline Fair for the Lions Club, said square dancing is “full speed ahead” this year.
“As of now, everything will be the same as before,” Battles said. “We will dance the two days on Saturday and Monday.”
Typically, square dance groups will start registering toward the end of July.
Battles said he knows some of the competitive groups already are getting together to prepare for this year’s annual competition.
“The tradition continues,” Battles said. “I anticipate it being a good year.”
The Lions Club meets the first and third Tuesday of the month at 6:30 p.m. at the Latta Barn at the state park. Guests are welcome to come to the meetings, and Copeland said the Lions Club would like to have more members.