Alabama Butterbean Festival
The Alabama Butterbean Festival takes place along Main Street in downtown Pinson on the Saturday before Labor Day. Honoring the locally grown butterbean, the festival is billed as the first, largest and only Butterbean Festival in the United States.
The event was conceived in 2006 by area resident Phil Sims as a means to bring together the members of newly incorporated Pinson as well as celebrate the area's history, which included the founding of Palmerdale (now part of Pinson) as a Subsistence Homestead Project of Franklin D. Roosevelt during the Great Depression. The event features arts & crafts, kid's activities, beauty pageants, athletic events and cooking contests featuring butterbeans.
The festival's mascot is Bucky Butterbean. In 2008 Bucky was "married" to a second mascot.
Individual festivals
2006
18,000 people attended the inaugural festival on September 2. Events included a butterbean recipe contest, a cornbread cookoff, a barbecue cookoff, a Tailwaggin' Pageant for dogs and both a 5K and a 1-mile footrace.
2007
The second annual festival was held on September 1. A 5K run, 1 mile fun run, cooking contests, vendor booths, the 2nd annual Tailwaggin' Pageant, a childrens' parade, and live music was featured.
2008
The third annual festival was held on August 30. The festival started with 5K Race & 1 Mile Fun Run followed by a Children's Parade down Center Point Parkway. The market portion of the festival on Pinson Main Street featured over 200 arts and crafts booths, food booths, educational & retail booth spaces. Several contests were held throughout the day including the Butterbean Recipe and Cornbread cook offs and the 3rd annual dog pageant. Entertainment was provided by John Hornsby & Mange, Act of Congress, Jordan Harrison, Cool Reign, and The 98th Army Silver Wings Show Band.
2009
The fourth annual festival was held on September 5 as a celebration of Alabama's 190th anniversary of statehood. The festival started with 5K Race & 1 Mile fun run followed by a children's parade down Center Point Parkway. The market portion of the festival on Main Street featured over 200 arts and crafts booths, food booths, educational & retail booth spaces. Several contests were held throughout the day including the Butterbean Recipe and Cornbread cook offs and the 4th annual dog pageant. Entertainers included The Springs, PUMC, The Smith Family, Maggie Jones, 59 North, Spencer Nezat, Cool Reign, Returning Broken, and McKinney, Parsons & Crow.
2010
The fifth annual festival, expanded to a two-day event, was held September 3–4. The festival featured a Guinness World Record setting pot of baked beans, which totaled 1,010.65 gallons. The beans were cooked by Todd Jackson and his team from Jefferson State Community College in a custom built 4-foot tall, 86-inch diameter pot.
2011
The sixth annual festival was held September 2–3 with an estimated attendance of 6,000.
2012
The seventh annual festival was moved back a month, held October 5–6.
2013
The eighth annual festival was held October 4–5. Activities included a petting zoo, camel rides, musical entertainment, carnival rides, and fireworks. There was also a 5k run, dog show, and car show.
2014
The ninth annual festival was held on October 3–4.
2018
The annual festival was held on October 5–6.
2021
The annual festival was held on October 1–2.
2022
The annual festival was held on September 30 and October 1.
References
- Martin, Wayne (August 2, 2006) "Pinson fest to honor butterbeans, history." Birmingham News
- Colurso, Mary (August 29, 2008) "12 To Do: With this bean, I do wed." Birmingham News
- Leslie, Cathy (August 26, 2010) "ABBF prepares to cook 1000 gallons over 1200 lbs. of Butterbeans to make Guinness Book World Record." Pinson News & Clay Times
- Coman, Victoria L. (September 3, 2011). "Butterbean Festival under way in Pinson (video)." The Birmingham News
External links
- Alabama Butterbean Festival official website