Hootin an Hollarin: Gainesville square will welcome big crowd for 63rd hometown festival celebrating Ozark County’s hillbilly roots

Welcome to the 63rd celebration of Hootin an Hollarin, one of the longest-running festivals in Missouri. 

For the next three days, the Gainesville square will be transformed from its normal quiet, week-day business tempo into a vibrant mixture of music, talented crafters, old-time demonstrators and down-home chefs serving up Ozarks culture and heritage, past and present. 

This year’s festival, which kicks off at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 19, and continues until midnight or later Saturday night, Sept. 21, has been widely anticipated by many festival goers. 

As of Monday, the weather forecast predicts a hot festival with high temps in the upper 80s and low 90s all three days. It sounds like Thursday night crowd will stay dry, but Friday might see a storm cloud or two. The larger rain chance is Saturday, when KY3 is forecasting a 50 percent chance of wet weather with the possibility of scattered storms in the afternoon.

No matter the weather, festival goers are sure to have a great time. This year’s festival centers around the theme “A Harvest of Memories Past.” 

Thursday, Sept. 19

The festival kicks off Thursday at 5:30 p.m. Young musician Jessica Suit will sing the National Anthem, followed by the Gainesville Mayor Gail Reich’s official festival welcome. Suit and another young musician, Ainsley Luna, will then perform a few songs as the duo “Stick Season.” After that, Wyatt Dodge and Colton Wood will play.

The Baker Family takes the main stage at 6 p.m. to play good, old-fashioned bluegrass, gospel and classic country.

At 7:30 p.m. the annual queen pageant will be held. While the judges are tallying their votes, three individuals will be honored on stage: the 2024 Barney Douglas Citizen of the Year, Kerrie Zubrod; this year’s Hootin an Hollarin parade marshal, Karla Eslinger; and Gainesville Lions Club 50-year member Pat Funk. Also, during the tallying of votes, the festival stage will be named the “Main” stage in honor of Dr. Bob Main, who helped with the Hootin an Hollarin festival for nearly 40 years before his death this year.

The night ends with square dancing to live music from 9 p.m. to midnight (or later).

Friday, Sept. 20

On Friday, the Shelter Insurance Kids Corner opens from 10 a.m. to noon offering free fun for kiddos attending the festival including the 10:30 a.m. terrapin race (kids should bring their own terrapin to race but are asked not to paint or decorate its shell - and to return it to where it was found after the race to help ensure its continued survival). Sign up begins at 10 a.m. for the terrapin race. 

The Main stage entertainment begins at 11 a.m. with The Layton Hollow Gals, followed by Homestead Holler at noon and the Molly Clair & Co. at 1 p.m.. Gazebo pickin’ will be held throughout the afternoon on the courthouse lawn. 

The Lil’ Cedar Pete and Lil’ Miss Addie Lee contest, open to 4- and 5-year-old boys, will be held at 2 p.m. followed by the princess pageants (open to girls in first through sixth grades who are pre-registered for the event) at 2:45 p.m. on the main stage. Both contests are free to enter. 

Free old-fashioned kids games will be offered at the parking lot off the northwest corner of the square, owned by Donald Amyx (adjacent to City Hall) from 4 to 5 p.m., and kids of all ages are invited to join. 

At the same time, beginning at 4 p.m., the band Stringed Union will play bluegrass gospel music on the Main stage. 

After that, two of the most fun - and funniest - events of the whole festival will be held on the west side of the square on the stretch of Main Street between City Hall and Molly’s Salon. The bed race kicks off at 5 p.m. in front of Molly’s, followed by the 5:30 p.m. outhouse race, which begins in front of City Hall. Teams of five are encouraged to compete. There is no entry fee. Early sign up is helpful but not mandatory and can be done just prior to the events. Sign up forms are available at the Ozark County Times office. 

The catchy tunes from Backyard Bluegrass will be coming from the Main stage at 5:30 p.m. followed by the upbeat country music group Psychobilly Cadillac Band, at 7:30 p.m.. Festival-goers can expect the band to play upbeat country music from the ‘90s and 2000s, along with more modern hits. 

The four Ozark County high school FFA chapters will be leading their own show at the FFA Bull Blast bullriding show at the Gainesville Saddle Club Arena, located a few blocks off the square on Main Street. Entry is $10 for adults and $5 for students.

Square dancing will again be held on the platforms in front of the main stage from 9 p.m. to midnight. 

Saturday, Sept. 21

On Saturday, the Hootin an Hollarin 5k run/walk will begin in front of City Hall on the northwest corner of the square. Registration begins at 7:30 a.m. ($25 per person registration fee with all funds benefitting the Gainesville High School running programs), and the race begins at 8:30 a.m.

The annual shotgun and archery shoot will be held at 9 a.m. in its usual location, across Highway 160 from the square in the grassy area below the roadway. There’s no need to pre-register, but those who wish to enter should show up before 9 a.m. It costs $3 to enter each round of the competition (per shot for shotgun and per four targets for archery), and there will be a 100 percent payout in Town & Country Supermarket gift certificates. 

The pet show, free and open to pets of all shapes, sizes and varieties, will be held on the Main stage at 9:30 a.m.. Registration begins at 8:45 a.m. and sign up will be cut off at 9:15 a.m.. No late participants are allowed due to the scheduling of other events.

The free fun at Shelter Insurance Kids Corner will be back on Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon with another free terrapin race at 10:30 (sign up at  10 a.m.). 

A new event this year, the Hootin an Hollarin Ol’ Auto Roundup car show, will kick off at 10 a.m. and run through 2 p.m., just in time for the cars on display to join the big parade. Check in begins at 9 a.m., and the cost to enter is $20 per vehicle. Power Wheels or other branded electronic or gas-powered children’s vehicles are also welcome, and there is no fee to enter that division. The funds raised from the event will be split between the GHS auto mechanics class and project grad.  

A cornhole tournament, free to enter for groups of two of any ages, will begin at 10 a.m. in the parking lot off the northwest corner of the square (across from City Hall). Sign up begins at 9:30 a.m., and entry is free. 

The annual costume contest (free and open to all ages of hillbilly- and pioneer-clad participants) will be held at 11 a.m. on the Main stage. Sign up beforehand behind the stage. There is no fee to enter and a category for all types and ages of old-fashioned costumed participants - or groups who wish to enter together. 

The sweet and delicious pie-baking competition will be held inside the Shelter Insurance building off the southwest corner of the square at 11:30 a.m. Pies should be brought before then. The competition is free to enter, and all types of pies are welcome. After the winners are announced on the Main stage, the office will be opened (likely around 12:30 or so) for guests to come and sample the winning pies. 

The Main stage entertainment will kick off Saturday at noon with the energetic Ridgerunner Cloggers. Afterward, the award-winning brotherly fiddle duo, The Marriott Brothers, will take the stage at 1 p.m. followed by the recognition of the 2024 Ozark County Farm Family recipients Eric and Jaime King just before the 2 p.m. parade. Another session of afternoon gazebo pickin’ will occur at the gazebo on the courthouse lawn. 

The big parade will make its way up Main Street by Town & Country Supermarket at 2 p.m., making a round on the square and exiting on the southwest corner near Shelter Insurance. Good viewing can be had just about anywhere along the route. 

Just after the parade, Shelter Insurance-Douglas Hawkins Agency is sponsoring a free magic show, which will be held on the Main stage this year. 

The magic show will be followed by the 4 p.m. calling contests, where contestants give their best cow, pig, turkey and husband calls on the Main Stage. 

Another session of old-fashioned kids games will be held from 4 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 21, in the parking lot off the northwest corner of the square (across from City Hall). 

The afternoon musical entertainment will feature a 5 p.m. show by Scarlet O’Hara, who will be performing a variety of 70s pop songs, followed by a 7 p.m. show by country artist Chelsey James. Both women have relatives from Ozark County and have enjoyed the festival as attendees in the past. Chelsey will be bringing along fellow musician Josh Cherry for part of her performance. 

The festival will end with the last session of square dancing, held from 9 a.m. to midnight Saturday night.  

Quilt show viewing 

The annual quilt show will be held in a building on the east side of the square behind the main stage bleachers. Visitors can view the quilts from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 19; from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 20; and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 21.

In addition to a number of awards given by the quilt show judges, those attending are encouraged to pick their favorite quilt and “vote” for it by adding a sticker to its information sheet. At the end of the festival, the quilt with the most stickers will be named the People’s Choice winner. 

Find out more

To see more information about each of these events, booth map, information on the bands and more, check out this year’s Hootin an Hollarin festival guide. 

It’s available for free at the Ozark County Times office, at the Hootin an Hollarin festival booth near the main stage at the festival or online at www.ozarkcountytimes.com/hootin-hollarin-magazine/2024-hootin-hollarin.