Sweetcorn Festival History
The National Sweetcorn Festival originated in 1941 through an adaptation
of the original Hoopeston Sweetcorn Festival. The first festival, in
1938, was organized by city businessmen to promote business in Hoopeston
and to celebrate the yearly harvest of sweetcorn.
The Festival was discontinued during World War II and later
reorganized under the sponsorship of the Hoopeston Jaycees.
With the coming of Labor Day weekend, Hoopeston prepares to
welcome the thousands of visitors expected to converge upon the
Sweetcorn Capitol to witness the annual National Sweetcorn Festival.
Our Sweetcorn Festival is unique in that, besides the normal
carnival, demolition derby, Grand Parade and other events, we cook
approximately 50 tons of sweetcorn with an antique steam engine and
distribute the corn FREE.
All events take place at the McFerren Park, located at west Penn Street
and IL Route 1.
As is common to most festivals in this area, a pageant was
held to name a local girl, chosen by popular vote of the persons in
attendance, to reign over the celebration. In 1939, local judges were
responsible for selection of the Sweetcorn Queen.
In 1940, the canning and canning-related industries of
Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio, Iowa, and Wisconsin were persuaded
to send a contestant to Hoopeston to vie for the title. Since the
festival and pageant now had persons in attendance from several states,
the name "Hoopeston Sweetcorn Festival" was changed in 1941 to the
"National Sweetcorn Festival" and "Miss Sweetcorn" became "National
Sweetheart".
The Junior Chamber of Commerce assumed the sponsorship of the
festival and pageant following World War II and has continued to the
present. They followed the same format until 1952, when the Jaycees
invited the 1st runners-up from their respective states' Miss America
pageants. At the same time, judges from the Miss America circuit were
invited to judge the pageant. The idea was to bring national recognition
to the pageant, as well as provide a training pageant for girls who may
wish to reenter their states' Miss America competition in future years.
The same traditions and goals remain a vital part of the National
Sweetheart Pageant today.
Eight contestants from our National Sweetheart Pageant have
become Miss America. Pam Eldred, Miss America 1970; Rebecca King, Miss
America 1974; Grace E. Ward, Miss America 1982; Debrah L. Turner, Miss
America 1990; Carolyn Sapp, Miss America 1992; Leanza Cornett, Miss
America 1993; Tara Dawn Holland, Miss America 1997 and Katie Marie
Harman, Miss America 2002.