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NEWS RELEASE

The 2022 Forkland Festival, on Oct. 14-15, is back in full after two years of the festival being limited by Covid 19. It promises to be a lot of fun for all ages, with most of the features that have made the festival so popular for 50 years: delicious food, entertainment, crafts, historical exhibits, and more!

Forkland is known for its delicious country cooking, and there will be plenty of it at this year’s festival. The Community Center will serve old favorites like Forkland burgers, chili dogs with homemade chili, grilled chicken, ham & biscuits, homemade cakes (from the cake-baking contest), and more. Don’t miss the “Pig Roast meal,” just like the meal served at the annual FCC picnic, with pulled pork (roasted outdoors overnight), served with Forkland’s special recipe BBQ sauce on a bun, plus baked potatoes and freshly made slaw. On Saturday morning, you can enjoy a delicious all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast starting at 8 a.m. There will also be numerous food vendors serving all kinds of festival favorites, including homemade fried apple pies, ice cream, candy, cakes, cupcakes, pies, ribeye sandwiches, crazy potatoes, honey, sorghum, kettle corn, funnel cakes, Mexican food and more.

The outside stage will host live country and gospel music both Friday and Saturday. The band Cadillac Tractor, which was a big hit at last year’s festival, will end the Saturday session, from 5 to 7 p.m. The Old Country Supper Theatre (Bean Supper), will be back both evenings after two years without this favorite Festival feature. A traditional Forkland supper (pinto beans and corn bread with all the fixin’s plus sorghum cake for dessert) will be served by the young people of the community. On Friday evening, longtime local favorite Phillip Clarkson will entertain diners with his well-loved country tunes. On Saturday evening, Forklanders Dawn Osborn and Steve Shepperson will serenade the diners. After the meal, there will be a special hilarious play, “That’s Forkland For Ya,” about the beginnings of the Forkland Festival. It includes characters from Forkland Community Center’s early days who will be familiar to many attendees. Tickets ($20 each for the Supper Theatre) are available online at www.forklandcomctr.org or by calling Janie Drye at 270-402-2768. Bleacher seats to see the play only are available at the Festival for $5 each.

Many kinds of handmade crafts (jewelry, scroll saw work, paintings, old-time toys, candles, woodwork, and more) are sold at the Forkland Festival, and some of the crafters will be demonstrating their crafts, including blacksmithing, soap making, chair seat weaving, broom making, and weaving.

You can visit the 1790s log cabin, hosted by relatives of Abraham Lincoln, and explore your family history in both the Family History room and the Forkland Lincoln Museum. In addition to genealogical information, the Museum has many interesting old items from the area. The Old Farm Equipment Museum (in the back metal building) is full of many things that were used on local farms in the past—horse-drawn equipment, cross-cut saws, hand tools, tobacco implements, a hog-curing trough, and lots more. The Wildlife Display is newly expanded, and the arrowheads and other Native American artifacts are back. If you are from Forkland or have relatives who went to school here, be sure to visit the School and Servicemen exhibit for memories of school days.

The festival will include many contests and special events

If you are a baker, you can enter the annual Cake Contest. Judging will be on Friday at 10 a.m. The winning cakes are available by the slice both days at the Coffee Shack—yummm!

Fox & Hound 4K Run/Walk: Run through the Forkland Knobs on Saturday at 8 a.m. to win prizes in several categories. Participants get a free T-shirt and pancake breakfast. For more information contact John Ellis (jontilden@hotmail.com, 859-319-9974) or Jordan Ellis (jordan.ellis@aol.com, 859-576-5777).

Classic Car Show: On view on Saturday only, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Several types of vehicles will compete for awards. To participate in the car show or learn more, contact Nathan Stevens, 859-583-6193.

Bid on many handcrafted items donated by crafters, including a beautiful Amish-made hand-sewn quilt at the silent auction. Bidding ends at 6 p.m. on Saturday.

Events just for the kids include fish pond, face painting, pick-a-pumpkin, petting zoo and barrel train.

The whole family can enjoy a horse-drawn wagon ride. Make your own art and try your hand at weaving in the Art Room. Buy a painted pumpkin at the Harvest Booth. Visit the Indian Tepee. Watch sorghum syrup being made. Sign up at the Information Booth to win a valuable gift basket door prize. Shop at the Gift Shop for Forkland T-shirts and other souvenirs. And don’t forget another very important activity: visiting with friends, family and friendly Forkland folks!

The 51st Forkland Heritage Festival & Revue is on Friday, Oct. 14 (9 a.m. to 9 p.m.), and Saturday, Oct. 15 (8 a.m to 9 p.m.), at Forkland Community Center in southwestern Boyle County, 16479 Forkland Road in Gravel Switch. Admission: adults $4, children 12 and under $1, preschoolers free. For more information, visit www.forklandcomctr.org or call 859-332-7839.