Falkville Fall Festival attracts record crowd of people on a perfect fall day

Falkville’s annual Fall Festival attracted a record crowd of people on Saturday thanks to ideal autumn weather, top-notch entertainment and free children’s rides.

After an unseasonably cold night Friday, the weather did an about-face on Saturday by delivering plenty of sunshine and temperatures rising into the low 60s.

“We couldn’t have asked for a prettier day,” said festival coordinator Chris Free. “I think a lot of people were just waiting for the opportunity to get outside with their families and enjoy themselves. This could be the last pretty weather weekend we have in quite a while.”

Free said the fire department’s pancake breakfast, which opened its doors at 6 a.m., was overrun by people coming to eat.

“We ran out of supplies and had to make a run to get more before the breakfast ended at 10 a.m.,” he said.

“The tractor show had 60 exhibitors, or about 10 more than last year, and we filled up all the space we had with antique and classic cars. We also had as many merchandise vendors as we had a year ago and from what I have seen the quality is better.”

Free estimated that the festival’s attendance at noontime was twice what it was a year ago.

A free kids play area was heavily attended throughout the day thanks to the generosity of several local sponsoring churches. Five inflatables were provided.

Another popular event was free live entertainment. Closing out the day was the highly popular Confederate Railroad, which brought in a standing room only crowd.

A number of those attending the event seemed satisfied to sit in the sun and observe as people moved from one activity to another.

Army veterans Roger Groves and Vaughn Harwell, both of Decatur, said they came with their wives who helped operate a booth for Blue Star Mothers.

“It’s been quite an experience to get a close-up look at small town America,” Harwell said. “Earlier, we watched a tractor pass by flying an American flag. That made our day.”