FESTIVAL FUN IN ALEXANDER CITY

STORY BY BETSY ILER

First up for Alexander City’s downtown events will be the inaugural BBQ, Blues and Brews from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Oct. 8 at 4 Court Square, said Main Street Alexander City Executive Director Stacey Jeffcoat.

“People loved the Gumbo Getdown we did earlier this year and have asked us to do more events like that one, so we’re excited about doing this one,” Jeffcoat explained.

The event in the parking lot at the former city hall building will include inflatable bouncy houses for the kids and a cookoff competition with cash prizes, as well as blues music with Tyrone Moultry.

“There will be a beer tent, but we’ll also have water and sodas available. And we’ll have televisions that will be playing the college football games, so nobody will miss their game,” she said.

Cookoff prize categories will include ribs, chicken, pulled pork and a tailgate favorite. Jeffcoat encouraged competitors to be creative with their entries.

“The food doesn’t have to be the main course. It can be a salad or a side dish or even dessert, but it has to be cooked on site,” she said. “We also ask that all entrants prepare enough to offer samples to about 200 people.”

The BBQ, Blues and Brews event is a fundraiser for Main Street Alexander City. Admission to the event is $20 per person. Kids 12 and under will be admitted free. There is no fee to enter a cook team, but all cook teams must register with Jeffcoat at the Main Street Alexander City office. Call her at 256-329-9227 for more information.

Then, return to downtown Alexander City on Oct. 29 for the Harvest Festival at Strand Park from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. While plans continue to grow, some of the favorite annual activities will include Trick or Treating amongst the merchants from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Dress the kids in costumes and bring them downtown to collect goodies from local businesses. They also might enjoy the face painting and inflatables.

Fall vegetables will be in their prime at the Farmers Market, and there will be arts and crafts booths for early holiday shopping.

In addition, Alexander City Theatre II will perform a Living History Tour on Main Street. E.B. Alexander, the man for whom the city was named, will tell listeners how the train changed the town, and William Benson will talk about the trade school he established in the area to provide jobs for freed slaves following the end of the War Between the States. A founder of the City of Youngsville, which later became Alexander City, will explain how the town was established. And there could be another very special visit from a popular historical figure as well, said Rodney Meadows, an ACT II board member who will direct the Living History Tour.

While ACT II actors in period costume will perform monologues along the tour route, tour guides escorting guests to each station will provide details and stories from downtown Alexander City circa the 1950s.

“The tour guides will relate some interesting stories about the businesses that were located there, the economy at the time and the people who developed the area,” said Meadows.

The tour will be offered by ACT II free of charge to the community, thanks to the generosity of this season’s sponsors. The tour route will start at Strand Park and walk through downtown, making stops at the fountain on Broad Street Plaza and the former hotel site before turning down the main thoroughfare and ending at the old courthouse. Anyone interested in having a booth at the Harvest Festival should download an application at Main Street Alexander City Facebook page or contact Jeffcoat at 256-329-9227.

Be There for the Blues

Clockwise from Top: Tyrone Moultry will sing the blues at BBQ, Blues and Brews; Enter the cookoff to win cash prizes; The beer tent will include TVs tuned to college football games.