The Pumpkin Show; The Greatest Free Show on Earth!

Known to draw nearly 300,000 people from all 50 states, Ohios Circleville Pumpkin Show is the sixth largest festival in the country and has been dubbed the "Greatest Free Show on Earth". (PRNewsFoto) [Photo via NewsCom]

It’s that time of year again, when people from all over Ohio come to our small town of Circleville, Ohio to celebrate our community and our local agriculture at the Circleville Pumpkin Show; The Greatest Free Show on Earth!  The Pumpkin Show is held towards the end of October and is the sixth largest festival in the United States.  Schools in the area, including McDowell, close for most of the week so we can go to the Pumpkin Show.  The Pumpkin Show is a huge event for such a small town like Circleville.  If you want to know more about the Pumpkin Show, grab a pumpkin doughnut and keep reading!

The reason the Pumpkin Show is called the Greatest Free Show on Earth is because, you don’t have to pay an admission fee.  Not everything at the Show is free though.  You have to pay to get food if you want it and you have to pay to play games and ride rides.  But that is all you have to pay for.  Everything else is free.  The streets are packed with food booths selling every kind of food you could imagine.  Burgers, pizza, hot dogs, noodles, and everything in between.  But of course, this is the Pumpkin Show, so there is a variety of pumpkin foods.  Pumpkin pies, pumpkin burgers, pumpkin doughnuts are all sold at the Show.  There is a huge tower made of pumpkins right at the heart of the Show and the world famous Pumpkin Pie from Lindsey’s Bakery.  The pie is giant and is one of the main attractions at the Show.  Another main attraction is the pumpkin weigh in where local people grow huge pumpkins and whoever has the heaviest pumpkin wins. There are craft and art contests that you can enter, for all ages. There are lots of rides and games like the Ferris Wheel, the Music Express,  and games where you can shoot baskets to win prizes.  There are noon and evening parades as well.  At noon are parades like the pet parade, the baby parade and Little Miss Pumpkin Show, where many of the 1st grade girls in the area dress up and ride through the parade on a car and later on go through judging where Little Miss Pumpkin Show is crowned.  The evening parades include Miss Pumpkin Show, where 11th and 12th grade representatives from all the local schools are chosen and ride through the parade on cars and are later on crowned after judging, the band of parades which has featured the Ohio State Marching Band many times, and the parade of queens which is all the queens of the local festivals.

The Pumpkin Show started in 1903 when the mayor of Circleville at that time decided he wanted a “small exhibit” in front of his house.  He decorated it with corn and small jack-o-lanterns and thought it looked like a “pumpkin show”.  Soon neighborhood merchants joined in and this idea grew.  Eventually a merry go round was placed on the street.  After a few years, the Pumpkin Show was made into an actual festival to unite the community and celebrate their agriculture.

The Pumpkin Show is a really important part of our community and has made our town so much better over the years.  The Show starts this week, so, Happy Pumpkin Show!

Image from http://614now.com/2014/entertain/arts-culture/circleville-pumpkin-show-kicking-off

 

11 comments

  1. Hello,

    Your post on the Pumpkin Show is so detailed that I can imagine it in my mind. Although I have a question: Is it only celebrated in Circleville or does it take place in other locations?

    1. Hello,
      Thanks for your comment! The Pumpkin Show is only celebrated in Circleville, which is why it is so special to my community.

  2. Hey there, PYAE PHYO
    I live in the same place, and the Pumpkin Show is very exciting. The Pumpkin Show though does take place only in Circleville, although I am sure that other places have a ¨Pumpkin Show¨, but they are probably not the same. Come visit sometime if you want!

  3. Hello,
    I really was interested in your writing about The Pumpkin Show. You have explained it very well and I would love to see some more posts from you. You show a lot of detail so I could imagine that I was in Circleville participating in The Pumpkin Show.

    Sincerely, Phoenix

    My Blog URL: http://phoenix6wildy.edublogs.org/

  4. Hello,
    I really liked this post because it is such a random topic but I click on it because it sounded interesting. I think that your information was relevant, informative and persuading. Your post made me want to visit Circleville just so I can go to The Pumpkin Show! It is also cool that it all started in 1903 with a man wanting a “small exhibit!” Overall I think that the post was great.

    This is my blog URL: http://martha6wilderness.edublogs.org/

    1. Hello Brady,
      I have gone to the Pumpkin Show every year since I was born. Personally, the Pumpkin Show is my favorite time of the year!

  5. Very interesting, though what is it that is free in the pumpkin show, because apart from food and rides I don’t really see what else a festival has?

    Just wanted to know. 😛

    1. Hello, the Pumpkin Show has food, rides, games, live music, huge parades, an art show and the admission is free 🙂

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