The 59th Barnesville Pumpkin Festival returns to Belmont County on Thursday

When that cool, crisp autumn air finally hits southeastern Ohio, you can always count on one thing, the Barnesville Pumpkin Festival.

Returning for its 59th year, the annual event runs Thursday through Sunday and offers something for everyone.

While the festival opening ceremony is scheduled for 5 p.m. Thursday, with Roy and Marsha Hershberger cutting the ribbon, Wednesday evening sets the tone with the pumpkin weigh-in at 6 p.m. Growers come from all over Ohio, Pennsylvania and even West Virginia at times to get an official weight for the giant squash. Trucks laden with the fruit await their turn to be hoisted by ropes and a crane onto the official scale where they can be inspected and judged.

The pumpkin that weighs the most will be crowned the king pumpkin and will be set on display for the massive crowds throughout the event. The winning grower will receive $2 for every pound of their pumpkin. The auction of the king pumpkin will take place at 5 p.m. on Saturday in the Giant Pumpkin area.

Live music will take place each evening at one of the various stages or local establishments. Some of the scheduled performers this year include Deep Down Country, Placebo Jones, Valley Sphinx and more.

The Eyes of Freedom Memorial returns this year, allowing visitors to view life-size portraits of Ohio-based Lima Company’s 23 fallen Marines of 3/25. The traveling exhibit draws thousands of visitors each year and will be located at Barnesville Middle School, 970 Shamrock Drive.

Contests galore fill the weekend. Enter your favorite four-legged friend in the pet contest or try your hand at the pie-eating or hog-calling contest. Those with a strong stomach can check out the tobacco-spitting contest. Homes around the village will be dressed up for the home decorating contest and the kids can go head-to-head in the kiddie pedal pull.

The weekend continues with a 5K, car show, games and rides, which kids can ride all night on Thursday for only $10, a farm machine display, a book sale and more. Food vendors will be set up during the festival behind the Giant Pumpkin area. Local favorite Kirke’s Ice Cream will be dishing out scoops of the pumpkin dessert, as guests enjoy blooming onions, fried buckeyes and pork-tatoes.

Saturday's highlight will be the annual parade beginning at 1 p.m. One of the longest and largest parades in the area, the event typically draws a large crowd. The Grand Marshall for this year is Barnesville Mayor Dale Bunting.

For a complete listing of the weekends' events, visit www.barnesvillepumpkinfestival.com or call 740-425-2593. The full Barnesville Pumpkin Festival tab can be found by visiting the link found on their Facebook event page.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Jeffersonian: 59th Barnesville Pumpkin Festival begins on Thursday