Malone sees largest turnout yet for Pecan Festival

The streets of downtown Malone were filled Saturday for the town’s fifth annual Pecan Festival. Visitors from all parts of the county and the tri-state area gathered between Main and 11th streets for the carnival-like atmosphere and fun festivities.
Not even the overcast skies deterred dedicated visitors. Organizers Flora Beard, Dorothy Mathis and Sally Gibson estimated this year’s crowd at about 3,000, which beat last year’s attendance by a thousand.
“This year’s festival has been a huge success. This is the biggest crowd we’ve ever seen,” Mathis said.
The day began with an early morning pecan pancake breakfast at 6 a.m. Many enjoyed the outside breakfast, across from City Hall on Main Street. Plates sold for $5, with sausage and coffee included.
Following the breakfast was the 10 a.m. parade, that traveled down Main Street with more than 100 groups participating. The Malone Band, fire departments from across the county, local churches, the 98th Army band from Fort Rucker in Alabama, the National Peanut Festival Queen and Little Miss Peanut, as well as other beauty queens and the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office were among the many participating.
The festival itself began promptly after the parade, around 11 a.m. Events were held on and around Main Street, with bluegrass band Pure and Simple headlining the day’s entertainment. On a flat-bed truck in front of city hall, the band sang bluegrass and gospel songs for an appreciative and enthusiastic crowd.
The North Florida Band, which plays gospel, bluegrass and country, was another featured group that performed.
“My favorite part was the wonderful music,” Malone resident Roberta Coon said. “I’m so glad the weather held up and allowed us to come together and enjoy each others’ company.”
The air was filled with the various smells of barbecue, smoked ribs, hamburgers and hotdogs, as well as fried fish. The many dessert tables, as well as traditional pecan vendors were among the other popular food concessionaires.
Many locals set up booths for arts and crafts, clothes, Christmas décor and other assorted items. Among the most popular items were the sugar cane stalks being sold, as well as the college souvenirs.
Vendors seized the opportunity to make their specialties available for visitors to enjoy, for the bargain price of $30 per booth without electricity, or $35 with electricity.
Children ran rampant, weaving in and out of the crowds to play games, enjoy pony rides, slide down the large inflatable slide or try to get their parents to buy treats from the baked goods tables.
People everywhere were looking for the almost hidden homemade pecan pie stand, to save themselves the trouble of trying to replicate the delicious treat for the Thanksgiving holiday. The pies were available for $6 each and sold well.
Pecan-lovers enjoyed the sight of The Pecan House on Main Street, where they witnessed the stack of pecan bags from floor to ceiling that were available for $7 per pound.
All was made possible by the sponsors, the Malone Joy Club, as well as the financial support of the Tourism Development Council.