Hillbilly Day

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Courtesy Hillbilly Day

Come on over on July 4, 2025, for live bluegrass bands under a shady 5,000-sq.-ft. pavilion, with arts & crafts, hickory-smoked BBQ, greased pig chase, horse-drawn wagon, snow cones, costume contests, clogging contests, children's games, and more! Hillbilly Day was founded in 1959 and is a celebration of Appalachian mountain culture and crafts. Admission is free. Parking donations accepted. Bring your own lawn chair for some traditional Appalachian music and family fun!

Hillbilly Day began between 1959 and 1961 to celebrate the Fourth of July and to showcase local talent in the areas of fiddling, square dancing, buck dancing, and political oration. The first gathering included music played in the back of a pickup, and a greased pole competition for the young, with money at the top as the prize. It has been an annual event that draws at least 5000 people to the small community of Mountain Rest on the Fourth of July. Homemade food and Bluegrass music are plentiful all day long, as well as demonstrations and competitions for sheep shearers, yodelers, and cloggers. Whoever has a talent is invited to come onstage, young'uns and old-timers. The crowd cheers for the most authentic hillbilly costume, and some of them have been the same outfit worn by the same person for the last 50 years!

Children have run around barefoot and rolled in the sand to prepare to pile on top of each other to climb the greased pole where money is pinned at the top. Of course, it's a team effort, and the child on the bottom of the pile has to have strong shoulders. Tug-of-war, tossing games, chicken coops, goat pens, roosters, rabbits, soap making, pottery throwing, face painting, fabric crafts, hillbilly T-shirts, corncob pipes -- you name it, it's there -- even a blacksmith and wood carvers. Grills and smokers are aplenty with chicken and barbeque; there are homemade cakes and pies, and of course, ice cream.

Watch out, because when the greased pig is let loose, it will run under your feet, followed by dozens of fast children racing to catch it, knocking over everything in their path.

Visit our website to stay up to date on event details.