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Roan Mountain Rhododendron Festival

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June 1947 saw the first of the Rhododendron Festivals, conceived and carried out by the Roan Mountain Citizens Club as a two-day celebration to memorialize and perpetuate the most gorgeous display of natural beauty on the North American continent.
This festival has continued uninterrupted for over fifty years.

The festival is held the third weekend or fourth weekend of June, depending on the peak of the rhododendron bloom. Originally the festival was held at the top of Roan Mountain. 

In recent years the festival is held in Roan Mountain State Park, located at the foot of Roan Mountain and features handmade crafts, food, and a variety of traditional music, plus an array of old-time folkway demonstrations.

63rd Tennessee Rhododendron Festival will be outdoors at Roan Mountain State Park in the swimming pool and amphitheater area June 20-21, 2009: Saturday 10 till 7; Sunday 10 till 5 p.m.
Location: Roan Mountain State Park, Hwy 143, Roan Mountain, Tennessee (Between Asheville, NC, and Johnson City, TN on US HWY 19-E, and only 40 miles from Boone/Blowing Rock, NC, and 20 miles from Banner Elk/Beech Mountain/Linville, NC) Also, the Appalachian Trail, as well as an official Tennessee Scenic Drive, run through our community. 

Parking by donation to local civic group, admission, demonstrations, and entertainment all day both days. Over 100 arts and crafts vendors. A variety of food available. Visit the world's largest natural rhododendron gardens atop 6000-ft Roan Mountain. Hike the Appalachian Trail as it runs along the border of Tennessee and North Carolina. Learn about our nation's history as you relax beside cool streams. Camp or stay in a rustic cabin. Swim. Play tennis. 


Activities and music will be at the Amphitheater in the Roan Mountain State Park, Hwy. 143, Roan Mountain, Tennessee.
Master of Ceremonies --- Mr. Wesley Holtsclaw

63rd  Rhododendron Festival Entertainment
Roan Mountain State  Park, Hwy 143, Roan Mountain, Tennessee
 
Saturday Variety
 
A Mini-Auction for Scholarships for Cloudland High School Graduates will be conducted between performances.  Festival vendors and local businesses have donated items.

Saturday Variety
10 AM--Welcome: Mrs. Sheena Jenkins, President of Roan Mountain Citizens Club

10 AM--Jim and Cheri Miller

11 AM--Two Step Bluegrass

Noon-- J. B. and the Honeybeans

1 PM--Mountain Rhythm

2-2:05 PM--Scholarship presentation to a Cloudland High School student by Roan Mountain Citizens Club

2 PM--Johnson City Community Band 

3 PM--Bob and Ellie 

4 PM--Roan Mountain Moonshiners

5 PM--East Tennessee University Bluegrass Band
6 PM--East Tennessee Bluegrass Band
 

Sunday Gospel
1 pm--Majestic Heights
2 pm--Royal Vision
3 pm--Gospel Grass
4 pm--Glory Way Singers

 

Sponsored by The Roan Mountain Citizens Club


Mini-Auction for Scholarships for Cloudland High School Graduates


Roan Mountain Citizens Club has presented the annual Rhododendron Festival since 1947.

This year we're trying something new: Each half hour during stage entertainment--10 a.m. till 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, June 21-22, we'll auction items donated by Festival arts and crafts and food vendors, and also those donated by people in our Roan Mountain community. If items remain after 5 p.m. we'll continue the auction until all have been sold.

Each year Citizens Club awards a scholarship, renewable for up to 4 years, to a deserving CHS graduate. Currently there are 4 students attending college and receiving these, and several have graduated.

We hope this auction will give our vendors and local business owners an outlet for advertising while perhaps introducing new customers to them. We hope you'll participate!

Auctioneer will be Bill Caraway, who will also be Master of Ceremonies for the Festival. You may have heard or seen Bill's interviews about the Rhododendron Festival on radio or television. We credit those interviews for increasing Festival attendance last year by several thousand, to 20,000!

If you'd like to donate a gift certificate or item, we could pick that up, or you could mail to Citizens Club, P.O. Box 545, Roan Mtn., TN 37687.

We hope you'll pull together with us to assist our local students.

If you have any questions, feel free to you our
ONLINE REQUEST FORM.

FOOD & CRAFT VENDORS:

Please click here for vendor information and vendor application

We're getting ready for Overmountain Victory Trail re-enactors on Sept. 26 at 6:15 p.m. For the first time in decades, they'll have the opportunity to camp on the same grounds as in 1780, the Shelving Rock Field.

Arts, Crafts and Food
Several well-known artists and local crafters, and delicious food
birdhouses, walking sticks, stained glass panels, windchimes, lead figurines, suncatchers, crochet, jewelry, glass pendants, dishes, clocks, buckles, ties, fossils, shark's teeth, arrowheads, oak porch rockers, tables, footstools, baskets,chair seats, beaded banners, keychains, soy candles, incense, bath & body products, walking sticks, birch tables, pine benches, lap quilts, theme quilts, nature photography - framed & matted photographs, pressed & dried botanical art, hand-tied brooms with carved faces, I-Bag pouches, handbags, fanny packs, purses, totes, backpacks, computer or diaper bags, pinweaving, handwoven fabric items, vests, aprons, bookcovers, scrunchies, giftbags, handmade soy tarts used in soy tart burners (no flames), bags, duffles, totes.

Magnetic jewelry, 14K, 18K with natural stones, sterling silver jewelry & 24K gold coins, stained glass chimes, nursery plants, tables, lights, coin banks & planters made form real traffic signals , original art on hand-made wall hangings & wall plaques, framed hand-stitched items, sterling silver jewelry using natural stones, hand painted glass nail files purses, totes, duffles, quilts, birdhouses, enclosed pictures, ceramic plaques, candleholders, crosses, Overmountain Victory Trail books, hand-carved wood, paintings, painted items, airbrushing, t-shirts, car tags, t-shirts with matching jackets in designs of hummingbirds, lighthouses, etc., hand-painted woodcrafts, enamel bird feeders, signs, cloth purses, totes, tart melts for tart burners, specialty food - pre-packaged gourmet dessert sarces in glass jars, custom gift boxes food enhancers, hot sauces, salsa, walking sticks, canes & gourds.

Appalachian style miniature cabins, fishing docks, covered bridges, country store, etc., placemats, napkins, centerpieces, casserole carriers, plastic bag holders, Hmong traditional needle & stitch art work, wallhanging, sand animals, pillowcases, traditional native Inca arts & crafts, angels, wreath, flower arrangement, baby blanket purse, picture frame, sunvisors, potpourri, oils, body coolers, hand turned bowls, plates, platters, lazy susans, other hand made wood products
painted windows & birdhouses, homecrafted soaps, lotions & soy candles, handmade aprons, handbags, belts, scarves, handwoven keychains, coin purses, jewelry, sterling silver jewelry, pewter figurines on amethyst crystals, Brazilian agate book ends, Christian themed woodworks, walking staffs, clocks, frames, wall hangings, ornaments.

Historical novels, handmade jewelry, Raku pottery, strung pearls, Swarsoski crystal Geneva watches, marshmallow guns, Quillows, dolls, bagholders, blue-jean pocketbooks, painted gourds, bears, dolls, dresses, driftwood, signs, painted ornaments, lamps, clocks, wooden objects, tables, fish, windows, vases, welcome signs, wreaths, clothing, birdhouses, garden benches, photo mats, booth for slab pottery
tents, costumes & accessories for children, wood roses (birch)
soy candles, sterling silver wire wrapped pendants & earrings
ornaments, can holders, trains made from GA marble, glass & sterling jewelry, fused glass accessories, pottery, hand dyed silk accessories

African wood & stone carvings, sisal & straw baskets, cow horn & banana bark jewelry, tie-dyed baby clothes , fine art nature photography, shea cream, soap, butter, milk bath, bath bombs, candles, lip balm, solid lotion bars , braided rugs in unusual shapes and sizes. Matted, framed pictures, prints, photo cards & bookmarks, jewelry, dog covers & beds, printed shirts, lawn duck/goose clothes, heat/cold packs, jewelry, wood clocks & pen sets, jewelry boxes, calendar frames, lucky bamboo, vases, whimsical mirrors, original abstract canvas paintings, face painting, wacky hair spray, antique & recycled glass bottle hummingbird & seed bird feeders, baby quilts, bedquilts, wall quilts, tote bags, pillows, tea cozys, teddy bears, homemade jellies, jams, jellies, bagholders, knitted dishcloths & towels, purses, angels, sweatshirts, , handcrafted jams, wine casks as gift baskets for the jams.

Hand painted roofing slates and metal poles , hand-made string & wind musical instruments, watercolor - oil - prints, gemstone sterling & gold jewelry, epoxy dolls, walking sticks, marble concrete bowls, photography - Roan Mt. , Roan Mt. village, historic, scenic, military/patriotic.

FOODS: smoked giant turkey legs, chicken-on--a stick, shrimp--on-a-stick, Philly subs, Polish sausage subs, chicken gyros, corn dogs, giant gourmet candied apples, funnel cakes, ice cream, Italian ice, honey, jellies and jams, fresh fudge, muscadine juice, jerky, fried pies, kettle corn, hot sauces and food enhancers, cotton candy, fruit smoothies, bottled sodas and water, canned sodas, hot coffee, fresh lemonade, tea, hotdogs, hamburgers, and seafood quesadilla dinners with rice, fried catfish.

We invite you to browse our entire website...and come visit with us soon.  If you are looking for more information or vendors information for the Rhododendron Festival choose from the links provided.




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