Oh, my gourd! Did you say 20,000 pumpkins?

Silver Dollar City is rolling out the orange carpet for fall with our largest display of real pumpkins yet!  

This season’s Harvest Festival presented by Humana® and Pumpkins In The City presented by Mercy® features almost 20,000 gorgeous gourds of all shapes, sizes and even colors! The piles and piles of pumpkins arrived a week before the festival opened in five semi-trucks from across the country. The hefty haul includes classic orange varieties as well as unique heirloom breeds in shades of white, blue and green.

“It truly is something special to see,” laughs Kelly Eutsler, visuals manager for Silver Dollar City’s incredible events like the Harvest Festival and An Old Time Christmas. “They open the back of the trucks and we always wonder how we’ll find a fit for them all!” 

They always do, though. In fact, Kelly and her team follow a special, 32-page festival “bible” to ensure each pumpkin is perfectly placed.  

“It takes an incredible army to launch our festivals,” she explains. “We have a tremendous team who can take an idea I’ve scribbled on a napkin and turn it into a masterpiece.”

Golf carts and tractors were buzzing all over the park as Harvest setup scurried up until opening eve. Maintenance and Construction team members even formed a human assembly line to move each pumpkin one-by-one to its final resting place.

“I always tell them, that to be successful, you must realize the end result is worth all of the day-to-day details. When we walk Valley Road past Time Traveler and Hazel’s Blown Glass and see those pumpkins, that’s when we all collectively breathe a deep sigh of relief and enjoy it with our guests. I want them to create memories worth repeating with their families. That’s how I measure success.” 

In addition to the eye-catching displays and towering pumpkin sculptures, visitors can enjoy live pumpkin carving demonstrations, shop from various craft vendors and indulge in fall flavored treats. The City’s Harvest Festival and Pumpkins In The City runs through Oct. 26. Visit silverdollarcity.com for dates, times, and to plan your next visit.