argen.gif (7977 bytes)Big Flat Annual Homecoming
By Reneé La Viness

NOTE:  This was listed for a number of  years ago.  Check with the church or chamber for information for this year.

Big Flat Annual Homecoming is held mostly on Saturday, of Memorial Day Weekend.  Homecoming begins about 9 or 10 a.m. and ends around 3:30 to 4 p.m.  If you want a parking place--LESS than a mile away, better get there early!!  Bring a lawn chair to sit in.  And that's all you'll need. It's about as informal as it could be.

There's a typical tiny town parade and live music for dancing in the "pavilion" in the center of town. Folks sit & stand around visiting and eating.  But mostly, folks just introduce themselves to whoever, and visit with each other!!

They have a live country band, there.  They have the turtle race, for the little ones.  If you've got young children, bring a turtle!! There are sawing contests, jig dancing contests, sack races, bean toss, skillet toss contests, and a queen's contest.  They also have a drawing for a handmade quilt.  At the school building, they have arts and crafts for sale.

Food aplenty will be there.  And pop, tea, and probably coffee.  One of the churches serves a noon meal, and people just kinda "mill around and chew the fat."  You can also buy home-cooked food across the street from the pavilion.

Decoration Day at the Cemetery is Sunday.  There will be a tombstone dedication at the cemetery this year for John Elijah Morris, too.

They have t-shirts for sale, $10.00 each, ball type caps, around $5.00 or $6.00 each.  Big Flat Annual Homecoming books are for sale, and the past couple of years, they've been $4.00 each.  Selling t-shirts, caps, books, and the drawing--helps pay for the Homecoming the next year!!

There are also lots of reunions around these dates.

Nearest motels are at Marshall and Mountain View.  They have lots going on up there, this time of year, so you ought to go ahead, now, and make motel reservations.  At Mountain View, there's American Inn, Holiday Inn, Mountain View Motel, Dogwood Inn Motel, Ozark Inn Motel, and Day's Inn, and there's Bed and Breakfast "Inns" too.

There is a possibility of a project being started to collect for a Stephen Treat monument to be placed in Big Flat Cemetery for year 2000 reunion.

[Note: If you have pictures of this event, we'd like to have a copy to post on this page. If you'll lend them for scanning, I promise to return them promptly. Thanks, Judi Sharp]