This year's Autumnfest festival will not only include music, food and art contests but also a special ceremony officially dedicating the newly restored Confederate monument on the courthouse lawn.
The dedication will take place at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 21 and will feature a bagpiper and a Civil War reenactment troop.
All other Autumnfest activities will stop during that time so the ceremony will not be interrupted, Arts Council Executive Director Sharon Deweese said.
Vicky Argoe, a member of the Neshoba County Monument Restoration Committee, said the other members would be available to answer any questions regarding the monument which was toppled during a 1990 storm. It was restored and erected back in its original location earlier this year.
Tim Gordon will play the bagpipes for the event and the Stanford's Battery reenactment group will add character to the celebration, Argoe said.
Autumnfest will also feature art contests and games for children, as well as plenty of arts and crafts vendors, Deweese said.
The Neshoba Central stage band and Philadelphia jazz band will open the event on Saturday morning with a concert on the main stage in the parking lot of The Citizen's Bank.
Entertainment will continue throughout the day as well as art contests at the old J.C. Penney building on Byrd Avenue.
"There are several works by artists on display," Deweese said. "There will be a best in show and a people's choice award. People are encouraged to come by, look at all the art and vote on their favorite. There will also be free clothesline art contest for kids ages 6 through 12. There is a prize awarded to the winner."
A specific area for kids will be set up on Byrd Avenue that includes such things as a moon walk and rock climbing wall, Deweese said. There will also be face painting and snow cones.
"Everything for kids will be in that area," she said.
Also, the junior auxiliary will be registering people for a breast cancer awareness walk from 8 to 8:45 a.m., with the walk taking place around the courthouse square at 9 a.m.
While Autumnfest is set for Oct. 21, related events are scheduled for other days that week as well.
The Miss Autumnfest Pageant will take place Oct. 14 at 4 p.m. at Philadelphia High School. The pageant is available to females ages 3 through 18. There will be winners in six different divisions.
First, second and third place awards will be presented in each division while each contestant will receive a trophy. Winners will wear their crowns and sashes during Autumnfest.
The first Autumnfest golf tournament will take place at Philadelphia Country Club on Oct 22. The event is a four-person scramble with a shotgun start at 1 p.m. Lunch will also be served at the tournament and there will be a $5,000 hole-in-one prize.
All proceeds will go towards the Arts Council's project to restore its theatre. For more information about Autumnfest or any of the other events, call the Arts Council office at 601-656-9838.
"I encourage everyone to bring their family out for a fun day downtown to support the Arts Council," Deweese said. "There will be plenty of activities for young and old."
