Homesteaders to take over Hot Springs soon

The 64th annual celebration known as Homesteader Days will be held in Hot Springs on June 7, 8, and 9. The event will feature live music, street games, a rodeo, car show, food and vendors, arts and crafts and parades. The celebration is intended to honor the original homesteaders in the Hot Springs area.

According to Chamber of Commerce President Leslee Smith, the event is a way to celebrate the history of the area and to honor those that chose to make it home.

“Homesteader Days celebrates all the people that settled here. It honors not just the white settlers but the Native American homesteaders as well,” said Smith.

Smith said the event involves months of preparation and coordination. The three day celebration will involve multiple events taking place simultaneously around Hot Springs.

A feature that has been absent for the last few years but one that that has made a comeback this year is the car show. The event will begin at 9 a.m. on the football field behind Hot Springs High School. Smith is expecting a good turnout at the returning attraction.

“We’ve had a car show in the past but we haven’t had one in a few years,” said Smith.

Smith said expectations are for around 800-1,000 attendees for the celebration that was started in 1949. The three day event will begin on Friday with preliminary booth setup in the morning followed by arts and crafts on Main Street in the afternoon.

Live music at the Symes Hotel and Fergies Pub will take place starting at 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. respectively Friday evening. Events will start early Saturday morning and continue throughout the day.

Arts and crafts will continue on Saturday along with food booths on Main Street. Fun jumps and waterball will take place in the park on Main for kids. A softball tournament begins at 8:30 a.m. on the softball field behind the high school.

Those attendees looking for a workout are invited to show up at Wall Street Place at 9:30 a.m. for a 3K and 10K race known as the Skunk Alley Run. At 11:30 a.m. at the Senior Center there will be an ice cream social complete with cones, floats and sundaes.

Attendees will need to prioritize and plan ahead because around noon multiple events are scheduled to take place in multiple locations around Hot Springs. A parade on Main Street, live music on the main stage, games for the kids in the park and on Spring Street, and a doll show at the LaRue Hot Springs Museum all start at noon.

Judging of the car show will be at the main stage at 3 p.m. followed by live music at 4 and 5 p.m. Also starting at 5 p.m. on Broadway east of the school is the rodeo that will last until around 9 p.m. The evening will conclude with live music at the Symes Hotel at 8 p.m. followed by a street dance from 9 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. on Main Street.

Sunday will kick off with a pancake breakfast from 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the Masonic Lodge. The softball tournament will start back up at 8:30 a.m. Attendees will want to be near Main Street around noon for the grand parade featuring pipe and drum players.

The rodeo will begin again at 2 p.m. followed by more live music starting at 3:30 to 6 p.m. at Fergies Pub.

Information about Homesteader Days in Hot Springs can be found on the event’s Facebook page or at 741-2662. Information on the rodeo can be found at 741-3115. Those seeking information about the car show can call 741-3630 or 741-2022.