In the early 1920s, Pine Bluff’s Fall Festival was the talk of the town attracting thousands of visitors and displaying the richness of Pine Bluff’s businesses and community.
Image Credit: www.thetelegraph.com
In the early 1920s, Pine Bluff’s Fall Festival was the talk of the town. According to the Pine Bluff Daily Graphic, “The Advertising Club of Pine Bluff, through its aggressiveness, gave to Southeastern Arkansas last year one of the best Harvest Festivals presented anywhere in the country. The Festival, in turn, permitted thousands of people to become better acquainted with Pine Bluff and their neighbors.” An ad by Dewoody’s Retail Drug Store was featured in a local newspaper congratulating the Advertising Club of Pine Bluff for its “aggressiveness in staging so large and important and exposition.”
In 1922, the Harvest Festival was no different. The weeklong annual festival was staged by the Advertising Club of Pine Bluff from Monday, October 2 to Saturday, October 7, 1922. It included displays meant to educate, entertain, and amuse. That year the Harvest Festival was sponsored by the Coca-Cola Company, which had a plant on Second and Pine Streets. Coca-Cola partnered with local businesses and even had a booth at the festival.
Hundreds of Pine Bluff residents and out-of-town visitors flocked to the displays each day the festival was open. B. W. Benton, the president of the Advertising Club of Pine Bluff, ensured that the booths and attractions at the festival were captivating and varied. Displays were separated into categories ranging from agricultural to art to home improvement and much more. Several Arkansas schools and school children even had displays at the fair.
Taylor and Company, an insurance company presented a display on fire safety and prevention. Their display was especially timely since it was fire prevention week nationwide. To lighten the mood, R. F. Ezell of Taylor and Company handed out sticks of candy made by Pine Bluff’s O.K. Candy Factory and wrapped in paper created by a local print shop. It was said that over four thousand festival-goers enjoyed those sweet treats.
Arnold Jewelry Company elegantly displayed a selection from their store, including combs, silver ornaments, and other gifts. The Pine Bluff Lumber Company nearly stole the show with a booth featuring freshly cut lumber from right here in Pine Bluff. Their display included a custom-made breakfast room set, a built-in ironing closet, a mirror door, door designs, and a medicine cabinet, which was given away in a raffle. The Standard Lumber Company also displayed lumber through its custom-made creations, which included French doors, transoms, and roofing elements.
The Reap and Crawford Furniture Company had a two-part display divided into a deluxe living room and dining set. Their drapery display was also quite impressive and affordable. Their display even featured a Sonora phonograph which visitors would enjoy during the afternoons and evenings. The dining room set also featured needlework from Virginia Mill’s local workshop. The Davis Floral Company beautifully displayed ferns, local pine trees, sandy paths, and flower arrangements around their centrally located goldfish pond. They even gave away a one-of-a-kind art lamp.
Along with placing an ad in the Pine Bluff Daily Graphic, Citizen Bank also had a charmingly decorated booth that served as a resting area for festival goers. The purple and white motif was draped in wisteria with a floral arrangement atop a center table, giving the display a lovely personal touch.
Finos Phillips & Bro., Pine Bluff’s premier typewriter shop, displayed the latest typewriter models, the L.C. Smith Bros. and Corona typewriters. The Pine Bluff Company had its own radio display. They hosted a concert on Tuesday night, broadcasting songs from across the U.S. and even a few selections from the Stuttgart Ad Club Band. The Layne Bolton electric pump used in Stuttgart’s rice fields was also featured.
The fashion revue staged by Fred Vining featured adorable little models with frocks from little Miss Fluffy Ruffles. The Harvest Festival also had an old fiddler’s contest, featuring T.J. Belcher, Pine Bluff’s finest fiddlers for a quarter of a century, and his trusty fiddle “Ole Cremona.” Mickey, the Singing Dog, known for performing at numerous fairs and vaudeville theaters was also featured on Monday afternoon and night at the festival to the delight of many children and adults.
All in all, the 1922 Fall Harvest Festival was a historic moment in displaying the richness of Pine Bluff’s businesses and community.
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Written by: Ninfa O. Barnard
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