Ghost of Davidsonville Fall Festival
The leaves are turning, and a chill is in the air as October finally draws closer. As they do each year, the Ghosts of Davidsonville will stir from their graves once again and walk the land for a single night. Arkansas State Parks and the staff of Davidsonville Historic State Park invite you to join them for this evening at the Ghosts of Davidsonville Fall Festival, October 12th from 5-9pm.
Entrance to the Fall Festival is free for all, with food, merchandise, crafts and haunted hayrides all available for purchase during the event. Cost for the hayrides will be $2 dollars for ages 12 and under and $4 for ages 13 and up. Kids are encouraged to dress up in costume and bring their trick-or-treat bags for candy passed out during the event.
Once night falls, haunted hayrides will take visitors on a trip 200 years in the past to explore some of the dark deeds and hauntings that might have called Davidsonville home. While you wait to line up, the park will show a classic Halloween movie. For details on the film to be shown, call the park at 870-892-4708.
An important note for those attending the event: The park is only able to accept cash this year for hayride, craft, and merchandise sales. Those wishing to use credit or debit to purchase hayride armbands and crafts must do so before October 12th. Refunds for such sales will not be available if the event rains out.
2019 Ghost of Davidsonville Fall Festival
Highlights and Prices
Summer turns to autumn, green leaves to rusted reds, and the ghosts of the past stir from their resting places once more to wander their ancestral homes. The staff of Davidsonville Historic State Park invites you to join them for an evening of fall fun, music, and history. The festival opens to the public at 5pm on October the 12th and will run until the last hayride departs around 9pm. Important Note: The event will be cash only this year, no debit/credit will be accepted.
The schedule of events is as follows:
5:00-7:00pm
- Historic Activities
- Kids Games
- Fall Festive Crafts
- Pumpkin Decorating -$4*
- Suncatchers – $2
- Stick Monsters – $1
- Food for Purchase
- And More
7:00-9:00pm
- Games and Crafts Continue
- Classic Fall Movie (Begins at 7:00pm, call park for details.)
- Haunted Hay Rides: ($4 for 13 and up, $2 for 12-6, 5 and under ride free).
Food Available for Purchase All Night Long
- Catered by Redskin Bar-B-Q
- Funnel Cakes by Cub Scout Pack 45
* While supplies last, one pumpkin per participant.
To learn more about these and other upcoming events call the park at 870-892-4708. Davidsonville Historic State Park is located fifteen minutes south of Pocahontas Arkansas at 8047 Highway 166 South.
Cathy Drew is a lifelong resident of the region that she loves to promote. She was born in downtown Batesville in the late ’60s, located in one of the eight counties she now enjoys encouraging people to visit.
Drew became associated with the Ozark Gateway Region in 1990 while working at the ad agency (The Media Market Inc.). The agency handled marketing for the regional association, where she and her co-workers produced an annual tabloid publication. She began working as the Ozark Gateway Region director in June 2000.
After Drew became director, she took the region to the next level by helping the tourism organization create a new website and moved it from the old newspaper paper tabloid publication to a color magazine format. She helped open a visitor center for the Ozark Gateway, allowing visitors to pick up information from the entire state 24/7. Over the years, Drew has helped the organization meet new marketing goals, such as in- and out-of-state marketing, assuring that all 100,000 copies of their magazines are distributed each year.
In 2016, she assisted in creating the first Ozark Gateway Region Golf Classic. The tournament continues to grow each year, allowing the organization to expand its co-op program and helping each county have dedicated promotion. Drew stays busy at Ozark Gateway as the ad sales manager, magazine editor, day-to-day office operations, trade show representative, and magazine distribution representative, all while ensuring that the region is represented all over Arkansas and southern Missouri.
Drew was featured in several local and statewide publications over the years, as well as the 1997 cover of the Ozark Gateway Region tabloid, along with her then 4-year-old son, Jon. She has received several awards, such as the Batesville Rotarian of the Year in 2010 and a three-time Paul Harris Fellow.
She also has served as an Independence County election commissioner for several years. She now serves as their co-election coordinator, helping with behind-the-scenes management of voting equipment, day-to-day election deadlines, and poll worker training.
Drew is Batesville Rotary Club Past President, and is the Rotary Clubs’ current membership chair.
In March of 2018, Drew was honored with induction into the Arkansas Tourism Hall of Fame for her many years of dedicated service to the tourism industry.