16 - Opinion (Local Issue)

Farewell to the Purple Hull Pea Festival: A Loss for Our Community

Photo from Encyclopedia of Arkansas. 

As a child, the PurpleHull Pea Festival in Emerson, Arkansas was one of my favorite events of the year. I remember watching in awe as the tiller racers kicked up dust and dirt behind them under the hot summer sky. Everyone in our small town looked forward to this festival in hopes of building up the bonds of our community. 

Since 1990, the PurpleHull Pea Festival has arguably been the biggest, and one of the only, community events in Emerson, Arkansas. Started by Glen Eades, an Emerson local who worked as a citizen-reporter for the Magnolia Banner News (read some of his columns here), the festival was intended to liven up the lackluster town. 

A quote from Eades states, "We were so boring, we didn't even have a cop" (PurpleHull). 

The festival started as a tribute to purple hull peas, a crop commonly grown and enjoyed in the area. It also featured a tiller race, the first of its kind, and has continued to host the competition throughout the years. The competition is actually known as the World Championship Rotary Tiller Race, a big title for such a small town. The festival even created the World Tiller Racing Federation in response to the Great Tiller Racing Controversy of 1993.

Video Link in Photo. 

Over the years, many additions were made to the festival, including:

• Great PurpleHull Peas and Cornbread Cook-Off
• World Cup PurpleHull Pea Shelling Competition
• Million Tiller Parade
• Vintage Tractor Barrel Race
• Classic Car Show
• Pea-Stompin' Street Dance
• PurpleHull Pageant
• Treasure Hunt
• Tiller Girls
• Arts and Crafts Vendors
• Food Vendors

A photo of Molene Bailey, a former Pea Shelling champion, being interviewed with the Tiller Girls (PurpleHull).

In 2020, the festival was canceled due to the COVID-19 outbreak. In the following years, the festival had to cut many previous events after attempting to recover from the pandemic. Then, in 2024, the festival committee announced that they had decided to permanently close the PurpleHull Pea Festival (Magnolia Reporter). The reason for the discontinuation has not been formally disclosed, though it is widely speculated that it is due to low post-pandemic attendance numbers and financial difficulties.

The PurpleHull Pea Festival was an event that was treasured by many Emerson residents. Some reviews left on the event's Facebook page read:

"Real southern FUN!!! My tiller ain't that fast, nor am I! But fun to watch." -Danny Bryant, 2019. 

"Love everything about my hometown." -RJ Carter, 2019.

I believe that the leaders of Emerson and the festival committee should bring back the PurpleHull Pea Festival. People who I've spoken with about the closure ultimately miss the event and want it back. It is a major piece of our town's history, culture, and charm, and it brings our community together in unfathomable ways. Our little town deserves the joy and connection that the festival brings in these trying times when individuals are often disconnected from the people around them.