PHOTO SUBMITTED

Mountain Strings will perform Friday and Saturday at the On Cosby Festival. Members are
Tom and Bobbie Dier, David and Shannon McClary and Dan Gathercole.

The 13th Annual On Cosby Festival will be held this Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the Smoky Mountain Visitors Center at the intersection of Highways 32 and 321.

This year's festival is a sanctioned event of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park 75th Anniversary celebration.

Included in this year's festival will be crafts, food, entertainment, antique tractors and engines, demonstrations, an open car show, children's activities, a Farm-City exhibit, authentic moonshine still museum, moonshine pavilion and other exhibits.

Friday's activities, which run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., will include School Day, refreshments sponsored by National Bank of Tennessee, organized games and a colon and sun booth by the University of Tennessee Cancer Institute.

At 7 p.m. Friday, festivities will conclude with a presentation of scenes from "Under the Apple Trees," a play written and directed by Duay O'Neil about the Carver family who had to move when the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was created.

Saturday's festivities, which will also run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., will include the Moonshiner's Run, an open car show, beauty pageants for all ages, apple butter making by Bill Ottinger and the "Last One" documentary presented by Keep Cocke County Beautiful.

Entertainment will also be a big item at this year's festival.

"The entertainment is definitely going to be a little different," said Penny Grooms, entertainment coordinator. "We not only have country and gospel, we have line dancers, cloggers and folk music.

"We are so excited to welcome new people to our festival and hope that we can get them to come back in the years to follow."

Saturday's entertainment calendar includes Maggie Holder at 10:30 a.m., Mary Knight at 11 a.m., Jack Knight and Billy Renick at 11:30 a.m., Marcie Wilds-McMahan at noon, Stoney Creek Cloggers at 12:30 p.m., Savannah Faith at 1 p.m., Carrol Ambrose at 1:30, Margie Lee at 2 p.m., Sheree' Ramsey at 2:30 p.m., car show awards at 3 p.m., Chrystal Lee at 3:30 p.m., Missy Ellis at 4 p.m. Stacy Rowland and Scottie Blair at 4:30 p.m., Hannah Rowland at 5 p.m., The Mountain Folk Reunion at 5:30 p.m., Mountain Strings at 6:15 p.m. and another performance of Under the Apple Trees at 7 p.m.

The Cosby High School Drama Club will be selling coffee, hot chocolate, hot cider and baked goods during "Under the Apple Trees."

The annual 'On Cosby' Moonshine Run, considered one of the funnest runs of the South, is slated for Saturday, Oct. 17, starting at Smoky Mountain Elementary School, located at 135 South Highway 32 in Cosby.

This is a fast 3.2-mile out-and-back course finishing on the walking track at Smoky Mountain School. Day of the race registration is $20. Registration the day of the race is from 8-9 a.m. with the race starting at 9 a.m. Special sponsor contributions are $20. All proceeds from the race will benefit the Cosby Family, Community, Education Club, a non-profit organization.

Awards will be presented to the race winner, to the next three male and female runner, the first Masters (40+) male and female runners, and first Grand Masters (50+) male and female runners, and first Veteran (60+) male and female runners. Other age awards, three deep, male and female include: x-9, 10-14, 15-19, 20-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, 70-70, and 80+. Pre-registered runners receive shirts on race day. Race day folks receive shirts as supplies last.

For more information, or to pre-register, contact race director John Jenkins at (423) 608-2452, or e-mail at johnbob@planetc.com.

At 7 p.m. Saturday there will be another presentation of scenes from "Under the Apple Trees."

On Sunday, a devotions service will be held at 9:30 a.m. Other activities include a Feed My Sheep Church Service at 11 a.m., Penny and Roy at noon, Steve Brown at 12:30 p.m., Chrystal and Penny at 1 p.m., Wild West Dancers at 1:30 p.m. Longshot at 2 p.m., Chuck Lamott at 3 p.m. and Randall Reese at 3:30 p.m.