Pumpkins Aplenty: Silver Dollar City celebrates harvest of crafts, music, food and fun

When you carve a pumpkin, the light -- bringing with it warmth and joy and welcome -- shines not only from the luminary but from the creator, says master carver Barry Brown. He might mean the craftsman -- or he might mean THE Creator with a capital "c" -- but either way, Brown sees jack-o-lanterns as more than just a messy kitchen in the making.

In his third year at Silver Dollar City's Harvest Festival, Brown shares his own joy in creating, teaching and capturing history, all to bring a light to the darkness of the coming winter. So does Angie McGuire, who also makes luminaries, but hers are fashioned out of anything she can cut with a plasma cutter. And that's just the beginning of an event that is built around traditional crafts, nontraditional foods and the light of a $500,000 "pumpkin expansion."

"Silver Dollar City is a place for families to gather and create memories," says Kelly Eutsler, visual design manager for the 1880s-style theme park. "So, our Harvest Festival is designed to appeal to the toddler in the family, the grandma, and everyone in between. The experience combines the beauty of the harvest season with the glow of beautiful and fun carved, lighted pumpkins.

"The large icon pieces of Pumpkins in the City, such as our three-story Pumpkin Greeter or our 12-foot tall cat -- all made from dozens and dozens of pumpkins! -- make the littles of the family laugh, and the beautiful carved pumpkins nestled in beds with bales of straw and mums are eye candy for mom," she explains. "Fun music streams in all around, there's something on the menu to tempt everyone's taste buds, and dozens of amazing crafters are visiting us.

"Autumn is my most favorite time of year, and the Harvest Festival with our added layer of Pumpkins in the City has become my favorite festival," says Eutsler. "It's an immersive experience for everyone."

Sweet And Savory

"Every festival has a theme to center around, and obviously with Harvest Festival and Pumpkins in the City we look at food that fits into the fall time of year and, of course, pumpkin," says Sam Hedrick, director of food and beverage for Silver Dollar City. "This festival, like other festivals, I like our staff to be creative and look for new ways to engage with our guests through food."

That means research and lots of taste testing, Hedrick says.

"The two key elements are always 'does the item taste good' and 'is it appealing to the eye'," he explains. "Is there a unique presentation or a 'show' element to how the item is made or served? We want our guests to taste great food, but we also want the experience to be part of the product as well.

"Harvest Fest and Pumpkins in the City has gravitated in the past to the sweet side as pumpkin goes naturally with sweet items," he continues. "This year, we have found that guests want to be more adventurous in their dining experience and are eager to try new foods that would normally fall out of their comfort zone. We have kept the best of our sweet items from the past -- like pumpkin funnel cakes, pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin whoopie pies -- and added new sweet items like the pumpkin hand pies. We have also had a big push with savory items like pumpkin chili, pumpkin corn dogs, autumn pork belly skillet, and pumpkin mac and cheese waffle cone, to name a few.

And, he adds, "now guests can purchase a Tasting Passport and try five different tastes for one price out of 40 different items. This is our biggest offering of any festival this year!"

The Tasting Passport was requested by guests who wanted to sample more of the park's offerings, Hedrick says.

"Each pass is good for five taste samples and lists all the items and where they are located," he explains. "From there you just have to explore the park and find the item you're looking for, we will punch your passport and have you on to your next culinary adventure."

Ask Hedrick what his favorite of the fall offerings is, and he'll tell you "that's like asking which of my three kids is my favorite."

"I have tasted and tried every item multiple times and can honestly say they are all great," he says finally. "I'm very excited about our pumpkin chili, pumpkin and sausage soup and autumn pork belly skillet. That being said, I'm a savory guy, and that is what's great about this festival: There is something for everyone!"

Barry Brown

Pumpkin Carver

Barry Brown grew up in a little town called Erie, Colo., where high school seniors always stole pumpkins from the surrounding fields as a rite of passage. He also carved pumpkins with his mom's paring knife like many other children do. What changed the trajectory of his life was buying a pumpkin carving kit as a young adult working in Denver, winning a prize in the contest it offered and finally meeting the owners of the company that produced the kit. He started work for them at a desk in their laundry room, he says with a chuckle, and eight years later, he was flying around the country to carve pumpkins, including the ones for the movie "Hocus Pocus." He got so good, he adds, that he even holds patents for tools related to carving pumpkins.

While Brown enjoys creating intricate, detailed pumpkins like the series he did of Silver Dollar City landmarks, he especially loves the demonstrations in the Red-Gold Courtyard, during which he teaches observers the tricks of his trade. It all comes back to his belief that when you light a jack-o-lantern, it helps push back the darkness.

Find out more at barrybrowncreative.com.

Angie McGuire

Junkyard Farmgirl

Angie McGuire was for many years a farmer, and rusty, dusty metal was nothing that interested her. Then her father retired from the family business, the farm up by Lamar, Mo., was downsized to 750 acres, and McGuire needed a new direction in life.

She found it in taking those cast-off materials and turning them into art. Then she started teaching others how to do the same thing, and Junkyard Farmgirl was born. In addition to arts and crafts shows and workshops where she teaches participants how to do what she does with a plasma cutter, McGuire will be showcasing her work at Silver Dollar City this fall for the first time.

It took several years of Silver Dollar City courting her when she was still too busy farming, and then an event in Iowa in October 2020 that convinced her the Harvest Festival was something she wanted to do.

"There was a Silver Dollar City vibe in watching me make the product that was delicious," she wrote in Show Me the Ozarks magazine. "And many returned for custom cuts.

"They brought tea pots, watering cans, hubcaps, a car muffler, vintage oil cans, garden sprayers, a grain bin lid and stock tanks," she wrote. "I cut flowers, butterflies, unicorns, Santa and a farm scene complete with a windmill. I ran on a creative high field by constant engagement and inspiration.

"I wanted more of that."

McGuire will be on the square at Silver Dollar City this weekend and back the weekend of Oct. 26-30. In between, she'll be in Western Kansas, Kansas City, back in Iowa and at her shop on the square in Lamar. Find out more about her at junkyardfarmgirl.com.

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