Howell Melon Festival facts for kids
The Howell Melon Festival is a super fun event held every August. It celebrates the special Howell melon, a type of cantaloupe that people say only grows around Howell, Michigan. This festival started way back in 1961. Each year, about 50,000 people come to enjoy the three-day celebration!
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Discovering the Howell Melon Festival
The Howell Melon Festival is a popular yearly event. It takes place in mid-August. This festival is all about the unique Howell melon. It's a special kind of cantaloupe. Many people believe it only grows in the area near Howell, Michigan.
How the Festival Began
The very first Howell Melon Festival happened in 1961. It was a way to celebrate this special local fruit. Over the years, it has grown into a big event. Today, thousands of people visit the festival.
Who Manages the Festival?
The festival is now organized by the Howell Area Parks and Recreation Authority. They work hard to make sure everyone has a great time. This group helps plan all the fun activities.
Past Festival Traditions
In the early days, a big part of the festival was a beauty contest. This contest chose the Howell Melon Queen. It was a very important event.
The First Melon Queen
The very first Melon Queen was a nurse. She won an amazing trip to Washington, D.C.. There, she even met the President of the United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower, at the White House. News stories about her and the Howell melons became very popular. They were even on the front page of big newspapers like the Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times. This helped make the Howell melon famous!
Other Past Events
The festival used to have other exciting events. There was an ice cream eating contest. A large parade was also a big part of the fun. The parade included groups like the Shriners. However, the parade tradition stopped in 2008. Even the 50th anniversary of the festival was celebrated without a parade. For a few years, visitors could also take a riverboat tour on Thompson Lake.
Current Festival Fun
Today, the Howell Melon Festival has new traditions. Instead of a Melon Queen, children are chosen for special titles. These include Melon Prince and Princess, Mini Prince and Princess, and the youngest, Sprout Prince and Princess.
What to Do at the Festival
The festival always offers lots of Howell melons. You can taste them and buy them. Each year, up to 200,000 melons are sold! In 2012, the festival closed Grand River Avenue for two days. This was so the band Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels could perform.
The Story of the First Melons
There is a wonderful story about how the first Howell melons were grown. It says that August "Gus" Schmitt, a local farmer, got the first seeds from a traveling hobo during the Great Depression. The taste of the melon was so good that other farmers in Livingston County started planting them too. While this is a great story, it is actually a myth. The real story was shared in an article from 1964.
Recent Changes
In 2020, many events at the festival were held online. This was because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizers found new ways for people to enjoy the festival safely.
