Follow our Allardt Pumpkin Festival Facebook page for more photos and videos from the 2024 festival

2024 Big Pumpkin Winner 717 lbs. Weigh-off sponsors

2024 Big pumpkin winner Dewayne Porter, Virginia, 717 lbs. Festival Chairman Cathy Jeffers with weigh-off sponsors sign.

 

2024 weigh-off crew

 

Walter Manis, Virginia, green squash winner, 461.4 lbs.

 Walter Manis, Virginia, green squash winner, 461.4 lbs.

 

 

Gordon Martin and Dr. Paige Gernt – 2024 Allardt Great Pumpkin Festival King and Queen.

 The Great Pumpkin has chosen Gordon Martin and Dr. Paige Gernt as the 2024 Allardt Great Pumpkin Festival King and Queen.

Gordon and Paige have deep ties to Allardt and to the Pumpkin Festival. Paige's roots in Allardt and Fentress County run several generations deep. Her parents are Lowanda and the late Charles Gernt, who themselves were honored as festival king and queen in 2007. 

 

Grandparents Walter and Flossie Gernt and great grandfather, Bruno Gernt, were among the early founders and community leaders of Allardt. Notice the name of the park across the highway – the Bruno Gernt Memorial Park. 

 

Paige's maternal grandparents were Hoods – Porter and Gertie of Jamestown. The Hood name is prominent among the very first settlers of Fentress County and in local mining and industry, as well as public service. 

 

Paige and her sister Marti attended Allardt Elementary School and both graduated from York Agricultural Institute in Jamestown, forging life-long friendships and gaining deep appreciation for the values and culture as well as the natural beauty of their home community.

 

The son of Odell and Connie Martin, Gordon grew up in Columbia, South Carolina. After attending the University of South Carolina, he met Paige in Charleston. She had graduated from the University of Tennessee Medical School and was completing her residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the Medical University of South Carolina. 

 

Throughout their marriage Gordon and Paige have treasured the pumpkin festival as one of their favorite annual events and an opportunity to reconnect with family and friends. Paige has attended 30 of the past festivals and Gordon almost as many. Eager not to miss the festival, Gordon once joined Paige by flying to Allardt in a small plane. He buzzed the pumpkin festival, alerting his friend and fellow pilot Clyde Stephens to come and pick him up at the Jamestown Airport.

 

As a pilot, Gordon has worked in plane restoration and sales. He is currently a manager with Allardt Land Company and oversees the family farm, including the area where the Pumpkin Festival car show happens each year. Gordon's deep appreciation for the local landscape and its natural beauty have long impressed festival goers. With helper Troy Rains, he is diligent to make sure the farm area looks pristine by the first Saturday in October. 

 

The family lives in Cookeville where their son Gernt Martin is a senior at Cookeville High School and Dr. Paige Gernt has been a practicing ob/gyn physician for 19 years.

 

We are thankful for this family and their service to Allardt, the pumpkin festival, Fentress County, and the entire Upper Cumberland region.

 

 

2024 Watermelon winner – 289.4 lbs.

 

2024 Allardt Pumpkin Festival Schedule of Events

33rd Annual Allardt Great Pumpkin Festival

and Weigh-off, Saturday, October 5, 2024

Revised 9/17/24

 

Pre-Festival Event – Annual Pumpkin Festival Beauty Pageant

Saturday, September 21, 2024 at York Institute Auditorium (701 N. Main Street, Jamestown TN 38556). For details and entry forms check out the Allardt Pumpkin Festival Pageant page on Facebook. Contact Stephanie at 931-267-5627 or Julia at 931-704-1240 if your questions are not answered on the FB page. Sponsored by Clarkrange Drug Center.

 

Festival Kick-off Ceremonies –10 a.m. at Allardt City Hall. Welcome and introduction of the 2024 Great Pumpkin Festival King and Queen with the Festival Beauty Pageant winners. Sponsored by Jimtown Florist.

 

Pumpkin Run –Online registration available at https://runsignup.com/allardtgreatpumpkinfestivalpumpkinrun. Day of race registration 7 a.m. to 7:45 a.m. at Allardt Elementary School (220 Portland Avenue). Shirts will only be available for on-line registrations prior to September 30th. Line-up 7:45 to 8 am and start time at 8 am Central Time. Categories of entry are 10K run, 5K run, and 1-mile Fun Run. Sponsored by Hall Family Pharmacy and conducted by local runners and Flowers Trucking to benefit the YAI Bowling Teams. For additional information contact morgan@flowerstrucking.com.

 

“James Asberry Memorial Weigh-Off” of Pumpkins and Other Vegetables – Register your pumpkins, squash, watermelons, and other vegetables from 8:30 a.m. to 10:15 a.m. at the Allardt Elementary School East parking lot. Entry fee $10. The actual weigh-off will begin at 10:30 a.m.  Allardt is an official GPC weigh-off site.

 

Prize Schedule

 

• Pumpkins - First place - $2,000 (2^nd – 10th^th place – $800, $600, $400, $300, $250, $200, $150, $100, $50)
• Watermelons - First place - $1,000 (2^nd – 10^th place – $700, $500, $300, $200, $150, $100, $50, $50, $50)
• Green Squash - First place - $500  (2^nd – 5^th place – $300, $200, $100, $50)
• Prettiest Pumpkin - $100

 

The big pumpkin winner must ride in the parade or be disqualified. See rules and regulations at www.allardtpumpkinfestival.com. Dwight Dickson will serve as master of ceremonies. John Gunter with the UT Extension Service will serve as the Site Coordinator. Sponsored by Micro Metals PM Inc.; Dilip Joshi; One Bank; Fentress County Farm Bureau; Burnett Grocery; The Florist; Builtwell Bank; and Jimmy Johnson, Fentress County Executive.

 

Antique Auto Cruise In – On-site Registration Saturday, October 5, from 9 a.m. – noon Central Time or until full (Dash Plaques to the first 200) at the 4-Way Stop in Allardt. $15 registration fee to help cover Festival costs. Half of the registration fee will go to the Fentress County Senior Citizens Center. All cars and trucks model year 2000 and older are welcome.

• Contacts: Austin Andrews 626-676-3220 & Arron Daniels 707-502-1970

• Swap Meet Spaces: $25 due before set up.

Sponsored by O’Reilly Auto Parts.

 

 

Tractor Show - 9 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. Central Time at Woods and Water Outdoors, 1853 Taylor Place Road. ALL tractors welcome and encouraged to participate in the Parade! 

• Event Chairman – Wesley Anderson – Anderson Farm Services - 931-239-2304

 

Faith and Blue – The TN Highway Patrol and law enforcement officials will partner with the Mt Carmel Freewill Baptist Church for the Faith and Blue initiative. They will again have the THP Motorcycle, the famous THP Litterbug, and the THP Slingshot located at The Allardt Land Company at the 4-Way stop. The Rollover Simulator will be there to show the importance of seatbelt usage. Our Special Operations will also bring out some of their equipment to display. The Recruiting Division will also answer any questions about employment with THP. Free food and drinks, games and prizes for everyone.

 

Pumpkin Pie & Roll Contest - Registration Saturday from 9 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. Central Time at the Allardt Fire Hall. The $10 entry fee will go to the Allardt Volunteer Fire Department with the actual desserts being served with the BBQ meals purchased at the Fire Hall.

• Day of show registration for HOMEMADE only pies and rolls.
• 1^st place $100, 2^nd place $50, and 3^rd place $25 in each of the two contests.
• Winners announced around noon on stage at City Hall.
• Sponsored and conducted by Amanda Hicks, Fentress County Clerk and Guffey Law, PLLC.

 

Children’s Costume Contest - Saturday from 10:00 a.m. – noon Central Time at Allardt City Hall Stage. FREE registration.

• Day of show registration only from 9:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. outside City Hall.
• Categories: Ages 0-2 years; 3-5 years; 6-8 years; 9-12 years; and group.
• Any costume theme acceptable. No live animals, please.
• Sponsored and conducted by SmartBank.

 

Pumpkin Festival Parade - 3 p.m. Entries will line up on the Baseline Road starting at 2:00 p.m. To line up, follow Highway 52 E from Allardt past the orange water tower to the Les Franklin Road. Turn left at the Les Franklin Road. Then enter the Baseline Road from the Les Franklin Road only. The deadline for entries is noon Thursday, October 4. Call Ashley Bilbrey at 931-397-0300 to register and for additional information. 

 

Entertainment On Stage – Allardt City Hall. Noon – 12:45 pm: Earl Conatser; 1:00-1:45 pm: Tim Ledbetter; and 2:00-2:45 pm: Higher Ground. William Bilbrey, Entertainment Chairman. Stage provided by City of Jamestown.

 

Crafts and Food Vendors  - Bruno Gernt Park and directly behind the park at the FCBE Alternative School, all day 9:00 am – 5:00 pm. Cathy Jeffers, event Chairman. All spots are full, at this time.

 

A Special Thank You to our Financial Sponsors to Date

 

Allardt Real Estate Company; Builtwell Bank; Burnett Grocery; The Florist; Amanda Hicks, Fentress County Clerk; Clarkrange Drug Center; Dilip Joshi; Fentress County Farm Bureau; Guffey Law; Hall Family Pharmacy; Jimmy Johnson, Fentress Co Executive; Jimtown Florist; Micro Metals PM Inc.; Moody’s Automotive; One Bank; O'Reilly Auto Parts; R & T Trophy; Representative Kelly Keisling; SmartBank; Union Bank.

 

 The Vendor spots for October 5 are now full. If your application was in the mail and received today or later, City Hall will return your payment. Anyone wanting to go on a waiting list, in case there are cancellations, can call 931-879-7125. We rarely have over one or two cancel prior to the week of the event. Applications will be keyed and placements shared on the Facebook page around the end of September. It’s going to be a great Weigh-off and Festival! Details answering all your event questions will be posted soon