Ozark Heritage Festival (formerly Old-Time Music, Ozark Heritage Festival)

The Ozark Heritage Festival (formerly Old-Time Music, Ozark Heritage Festival) in downtown West Plains will celebrate its 31st year on October 17 & 18. Admission to all festival events is free. The Festival footprint will be focused in and around the West Plains Civic Center, from the east lawn of the Civic Center, down East Main Street, and north on St. Louis Street to Trish Knight Ave. The size of the footprint will make it easier for people to move from one location to another. There is ample parking in the city lots, and Handicapped Parking is available as marked in the Civic Center west and north lots.

Headliners are The Creek Rocks, a folk group from the Ozarks led by banjoist Cindy Woolf and guitarist Mark Bilyeu, who will perform at 8 PM on Friday, October 17. The Wheelhouse Rousters will perform at 8PM on Saturday, October 18. Both performances will be held in the Civic Center theater.

Performances, workshops and demonstrations on musical and traditional arts will be presented throughout the festival campus.  Music in the civic center theater begins at noon with MC Rick Hamby. The evening headliner performances will begin at 8 pm.  Workshops begin at 11 am in Dogwood Rooms.  Fiddle, banjo, harmonica, and dulcimer are among the offerings this year.

From 11 am to 5 pm each day, the Magnolia Room will be the location where special programs by noted presenters are scheduled. Each hour will feature a different topic such as Mills, “Outfitting for the Outdoors,” Finding the Story You Least Expect, and the West Plains Dance Hall Explosion. Check the schedule for the full list.

The Team Sorting Competition will take place Friday and Saturday, on the east lawn. The Sorghum making demo will be on E. Main and Curry St., also the location for the Bucket Brigade competition and Children’s Activities, sponsored by the Boys and Girls Club of West Plains. Artisans and demonstrators will be located on the West Civic Center lawn in the Artisan Village and on the East lawn in the living history encampment. There’s so much to see!

The Jig Dance Competition will be held in the theater on Saturday. Prize money plus gift certificates will be awarded. Come watch this unique dance style. Traditional square dancing, where the caller is part of the square, will take place both Friday and Saturday starting at 6 p.m. in the Exhibit Hall. We have a great lineup of dance musicians, and the dances will be hosted by Andy and Jane Elder.

The Cooking Stage will be located under the Brush Arbor in the front of the Civic Center. Friday will feature Dutch Oven Cooking.  Saturday will include a community “Sing” and the Pie Competition awards. Pie competition entries are due in the Redbud Room between 10:00 – 10:30 a.m. Results of the judging with prize money and special awards will be announced at 12:45 at the Cooking Stage, followed by samples!

Vendor booths promise a wide assortment of products, information on local organizations and food concessions offering everything from lemonade to succotash. Organizers are grateful for their participation.

The master schedule showing locations and event times for Friday and Saturday, as well as schedules of activities by time each day are available on the festival website.

Many thanks to the West Plains Daily Quill for preparing a special Festival Tab each year. Copies will be distributed to subscribers, and additional copies made available. More details and photos of artists and events are always included in that Tab.

2025 Festival partners include the West Plains Council on the Arts, the City of West Plains, the Ozark Heritage Welcome Center, West Plains Civic Center, and Missouri State University-West Plains. Partial funding for this event is provided by the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency. Additional support has been provided by Missouri Humanities.

For more information on the festival e-mail:  
visit the website at: www.Oldtimemusic.org
Facebook at   https://www.facebook.com/Old.Time.Music.Festival
Vendor registration form here.