RICHMOND —
Madison County is getting ready for another fun-packed September weekend.
It will be highlighted by two blockbuster events, the three-day Spoonbread Festival in Berea and re-enactments of the Revolutionary War Siege of Boonesborough at the state park on the Kentucky River.
That's not all, however, as two of the county's four high schools — Madison Central and Berea Community — will celebrate their homecomings this weekend with parades, football games and the crowning of queens and kings.
Both schools will have parades Thursday evening featuring floats representing classes and clubs as well as automobiles carrying candidates for coronation.
On Friday, the Madison Central Indians of Richmond will take on the Bulldogs of Lexington's Dunbar High while the Berea Pirates will host the Warriors of Eminence. Both games start at 7:30 p.m.
Also on Friday, Gospel and soul singer Al Green performs Friday at 7 p.m. in the EKU Center for the Arts.
On Saturday, the crossroads community of Kirksville will stage its annual Kirksville Day celebration. Events include a parade at 11 a.m.
And on Sunday, the Royal Drummers and Dancers of Burundi will perform in the EKU Center for the Arts at 8 p.m.
Spoonbread Festival
The Berea Chamber of Commerce's signature event gets started Friday at 3 p.m. in Memorial Park at the corner of Jefferson Street and Broadway.
Servers will start spooning out spoonbread as winners of the festival’s Sept. 1 pageants are introduced, exhibits, including an antique tractor show, open and the carnival rides start to whir. At 3:30 p.m. the first of almost nonstop musical entertainment will start.
In addition to the continuing entertainment, Friday evening will feature a cornhole tournament, a picnic on the lawn and then the firing up of hot-air balloons at dusk.
On Saturday, activities get underway at 6 a.m. with a pancake breakfast at the Berea Methodist Church, breakfast on the lawn of Memorial Park at 7:30 a.m. and a 5K race and one-mile walk at 8 a.m.
Exhibits resume, as do the carnival rides at Kiddieland, at 10 a.m. Puppets visit Kiddie Land at 10:45 and stage a show across Jefferson Street in the Russel Acton Folk Center at 11:30.
The spoonbread-eating contest becomes the focus at 12:30 p.m., followed by the parade at 2 p.m. A motorcycle ride also leaves the folk center parking lot at 2.
The dog show begins at 6 p.m. and the final music act takes the stage at 7:15 with everything closing for the day at 9.
Activities resume at noon on Sunday and continue through 5 p.m.
For details, visit www.spoonbreadfestival.com.
Siege of Boonesborough
The intrepid band of settlers who made Fort Boonesborough their home withstood a siege by British officers and American Indians in 1778 as the American colonies struggled for independence.
Although the replica fort at Boonesbororough State Park is better situated today on a hill instead of by the riverbank, the attackers still make a game attempt at subduing it each September.
Visitors are invited to come early and spend the day learning about 18th century life in Kentucky. The living-history event will include militia and settlers' camps, 18th century cannon firing demonstrations, a Native American Village, merchants, traders, food and more.
Battles will be staged at 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday and at dusk on Saturday. The fort is open from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.
Local News
Spoonbread Fest highlights another busy weekend
MCHS, BCS homecomings, Siege of Boonesborough also on tap
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