What it is and why we celebrate it in Oconee County
Curious about the history and inspiration behind some of Oconee County’s favorite festivals? Oconee History Museum, in partnership with Lake Hartwell Country, has the cure for your curiosity with a new digital exhibit series called Why We Celebrate. This exhibit explores the history and culture of Mountain Rest’s Hillbilly Day, Westminster’s Apple Festival, and Walhalla’s Oktoberfest. Each digital exhibit will include photographs, programs, memorabilia, oral histories and much more showcasing the history and origins of each festival.
Funds for “Why We Celebrate” were awarded to Oconee History Museum through a Growth Grant from South Carolina Humanities, www.schumanities.org. Funding for the Growth Grants has been provided by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
“For 50 to 60 years now these festivals have been living reminders of Oconee County’s history and culture, but often newcomers and visitors don’t recognize why we celebrate. Of course we sorely missed these celebrations during the pandemic, and so we wanted to do our part to help preserve the history of these festivals and promote them during this period of recovery as we all work to reconnect with the public,” said museum Director/Curator Leslie Hagerty.
Why We Celebrate: Hillbilly Day is the first digital exhibit in this series. Hillbilly Day has been hosted on July 4th since the early 1960s. Hillbilly Day is a reflection and celebration of the character and culture of the Mountain Rest community – a community long characterized by a unique blend of Appalachian independence and Southern hospitality.
Additional digital exhibits in the series will launch in the month preceding each festival. Public programs at the museum will also be held at Oconee History Museum in Walhalla.
You can view the Why We Celebrate exhibits and learn more about museum programs and festival details at https://www.oconeehistorymuseum.org/learn/why-we-celebrate/