Organizers are currently seeking vendors and entertainment for the 48th annual Trigg County Country Ham Festival. The festival begins with breakfast on October 10th and continues until October 13th in downtown Cadiz and elsewhere.
On Main Executive Director Brianna Hyde said vendors can apply online at cadizkyonmain.com by going to the “Events” tab and selecting “Apply and Register.”
Prospective vendors may print and mail the application to Hyde, Maine Cadiz, P.O. Box 1465, Cadiz, Kentucky 42211, but the director prefers that applications be submitted online. said.
She said entertainment applicants should email onmain@cityofcadiz.com and include a video of the performance or a link to the video so they can see the band.
Hyde said he hopes the bands that perform at the Ham Festival are in line with the image and quality that the organizers are looking for.
She plans to watch each band perform to ensure they project the right image.
Hyde said he would like to see the 2024 Ham Festival focus more on the agricultural aspects of the annual festival.
“This is an agricultural festival,” Hyde said, adding that the event will include a country ham auction at the Cadiz Baptist Church Annex, a baking contest and other similar events, as well as a pony pull at the Lexi Busch Convention Center. He pointed out that it also includes horses and horse shows. at the Trigg County Recreation Center on Complex Drive.
This year's Ham Festival begins with breakfast at 7 a.m. Oct. 10 at the Convention Center, and the Great American Carnival rides open at 5 p.m. Oct. 10 at West Caddis Park.
The festival itself is scheduled for Oct. 11 and 12, with activities lasting until 1 p.m. and ending with the festival parade at 2 p.m.
Hyde said the Ham Festival is traditionally held the second weekend in October.
She said that although the parade is returning to the festival for the first time in several years, there are some new things planned for this year's Ham Festival as well.
“We're still working out those details,” she said, declining to say exactly what those are.
Mr Hyde said organizers were working hard to make the Ham Festival an event that locals and tourists alike would want to attend.
She hopes to build up to the 50th Ham Festival in a few years, which she says is a special event.
Hyde said she wants local residents to participate in the festival, but also pointed out that visitors have a huge impact on the Trigg County community.
They stay in local hotels, eat and shop in the community, and get gas in the area.
“I feel like the Ham Festival is really appealing to get people here in the first place,” Hyde said, adding that festival organizers want to give visitors a look at what the local community has to offer and make it a year-long event. He explained that he would like them to come back at other times.
Organizers include a committee of approximately 10 to 15 people who help organize the annual festival, and Hyde called on the entire community to apply to join the committee for 2024.
The new planning committee includes past organizers as well as newcomers, and Hyde said new people always bring new perspectives that haven't been seen before.
She said she is always looking forward to seeing how everything goes so that things can improve for the annual event.
“We work hard to make it a festival that tourists and locals want to come to,” she said of the community's Country Ham Festival.
Hyde said the festival is supported by donations and community sponsorship, and anyone can become a sponsor.
She said last year's event was a success.
Feedback on the music has been great, with vendors calling this year one of their best yet.
People downtown loved the contest.
Hyde said the deadline for vendor applications this year is April 30, and those selected for the festival will be notified by mid-to-late May.
There is a little more leeway for bands interested in participating in the festival, she says.