This month’s Back in My Day is the Memories of the Colleton County Rice Festival. The First Rice Festival I attended was the first Rice Festival, in 1976. The festival despite some inclement weather was an amazing undertaking for a small town. The closing of Washington Street, the masses of people, and the performances was almost overwhelming for a 12-year-old. We had a blast.
The Rice Festival had many opportunities for entertainment, the soapbox derby, the street vendors, the parade, and the arts and crafts vendors set up on the courthouse lawn. Children could catch a cartoon at the Cook Theatre or catch local performances on the Main Stage Downtown where the Waterfall is now located. As time went by, we got to see headlining entertainment, such as Minnie Perl, Jerry Clower, and Chubby Checker. The entertainment was held at the old football stadium on Black Street, where the fireworks capped off the festival on Saturday Night.
The year Chubby Checker was in town, WJWJ-TV, the South Carolina Educational Television affiliate out of Beaufort came to town to film the festival events live for a television program. I was absolutely mesmerized by the equipment and the production taking place around town. I would follow the remote truck, a GMC Camper, around town. This was noticed by one of the engineers and given a tour, I was hooked on TV production. This actually led to a very successful career in TV and Radio, taking me from small town radio in Beaufort County all the way to National Television. You never know what might inspire a teenager to persue a career just from a few days of exposure to a new field.
I really liked the Soap Box Derby on the Hargo House Hill. Families spent quality time together to figure out how to get that extra burst of speed out of the Derby Car. Coming off the ramp was a thrill, the steering was iffy, the brakes were almost nonexistent and if you made it to the railroad tracks someone would be there to stop you. A successful run had all four wheels staying on the car. I really don’t know who had more fun, the parents or the racers.
Another memory was building the Pinewood Derby Cars, typically hosted by the Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts. These hand built cars were raced on a track to see who had the most competitive car and could stay within the rules. This always led to some very loose interpretation of the rules.
The street dance was always a great time with the street running into a concert hall. Later the dance moved to the city parking lot and even the armory, but the live band always made for a great time.
Other cool memories are the Circus, Airshow, and various fairs over the years.
I was lucky to experience the first Rice Festival and have loved seeing it grow and the memories it has made over the years. From 6,000 visitors in 1976 to 32,000 during the 50th Celebration last year, the festival has become one of the premier festivals in South Carolina.
