It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas in Smith County and the Upper Cumberland area! As we continue into the Christmas season, several area Christmas Parades will be held for you to enjoy. 

The Carthage Christmas Parade is the first in the lineup, beginning at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, November 28, 2021. Smith County Hometown Christmas will also be held in Downtown Carthage on Sunday beginning at 5:30 p.m.

The Gordonsville Christmas Parade is set for Saturday, December 4, 2021, at 5:00 p.m.

Look below to see a list of other Christmas parades happening in and around the Upper Cumberland:

• Smithville – Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 4:00 p.m.
• Lafayette – Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 1:00 p.m.
• Watertown – Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 3:00 p.m.
• Woodbury – Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 12:00 p.m.
• Red Boiling Springs – Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 6:00 p.m.
• Lebanon – Sunday, December 5, 2021 at 2:00 p.m.
• Liberty – Sunday, December 5, 2021 at 2:00 p.m.
• Alexandria – Sunday, December 5, 2021 at 5:00 p.m.
• Hartsville – Saturday, December 11, 2021 at 10:00 a.m.
• Mt. Juliet – Saturday, December 11, 2021 at 1:00 p.m.
• Cookeville – Saturday, December 11, 2021 at 6:00 p.m.

Know of any more Christmas parades in the area? Let us know! Send us a message on Facebook with the location, date, and time of the parade, and we will add it to our list!

Several artists will be featuring their artwork of animals at the Carthage Junction Depot on Saturday, November 13th, 2021. The event will take place from 10am- 4pm. This event is free and open to the public, but donations are gratefully accepted for the Smith County Humane Association, Waggin’ Tails, as well as local animal fostering services.

The artists that will be featuring their work are: Jennifer Tanis, Carey Malone, Amber Givens, Carolyn Ford, Barcley Rhea, and Anne West Towns.

Come out and enjoy these beautiful pieces of art and help support a great cause for the community.

American Legion Post 57 will hold the 2021 Veterans Day parade on Sunday, November 7th, on Main Street in Carthage, TN. The parade is scheduled to begin at 2:00 pm.

All veterans are welcome to walk with fellow veterans. If you have an antique car, we encourage you to come out and drive one of the veterans who are unable to walk. Other veterans are also able to ride on one of the parade wagons stationed on Carmack. The line up for the parade begins at 1:00 pm on Carmack Ave. The parade will proceed down Main St. from Carmack Ave to the Historic Smith County Courthouse. A ceremony will be held on the Historic Smith County Courthouse steps following the parade.

You are invited and encouraged to come out and line the streets of Carthage in honor of our Veterans! If you are unable to attend the parade, you can watch live coverage of the parade on Smith County Insider’s Facebook Page.

Come out this Saturday, November 6th, to the annual Gordonsville United Methodist Amazing Grace Marketplace. Breakfast and lunch will be served with plenty of homemade pies, cakes, cookies, and desserts available. There will also be a vast selection of homemade crafts to choose from.

Petal and Grain Meats, JL 5 Designs, Plexus, Southern Sugars Baking Co, CC Thread Co, Blue Line Farm, Stickers by C-Hoop, Ornaments, Patchwork Tees, Home With Flossi and Heihei will all be there!

Saturday, November 7, from 8:00 am – 2:00 pm. Good food, good fun, and good fellowship! Don’t miss it!

Vendors can sell crafts, art, household goods, furniture, jewelry, clothes, and anything else you might    find at a flea market.  Food trucks are welcomed.  

Booths will be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.  Set-up starts at 7 a.m. on the Saturday of the event.  Vendors furnish their own table, tent, chairs, water, and generators.  Porta-potties will be on site.  Booth spaces are 20 feet across the front.

The event fee is $20 per booth.  A Peddler’s Permit must also be obtained.  They cost $20 and are good for one year.  Both the event fee and Peddler’s Permit must be obtained by noon on the Friday before the event. This can be done at Carthage City Hall, 314 Spring Street, Carthage.

Fun day for the whole family! 

Hope you can join us!

For more information, please call (615) 735-1881 ext. 202

or email: cglidwell@townofcarthagetn.com (subject line: Market-Fest). 

The Gordonsville Events Committee will host the 4th annual Gordonsville Halloween Bash from 5:00 p.m until 8:00 p.m. on Sunday, October 31, 2021. The event will take place on East Main Street in Gordonsville. The committee is working diligently to make this event bigger and better, while keeping it safe for everyone to enjoy.

This year, the Halloween Bash will feature photo booths, food trucks, free bouncy houses, free train rides, a pop-up haunted house, music, dancing, door prizes, a $250 cash giveaway, a costume contest, a touch-a-truck experience, TONS of candy and much more!

The Gordonsville Baseball Team will be hosting a Pop-Up Haunted House called “Return of the Scream Factory” at the 2021 Gordonsville Halloween Bash! $5 donation per person – All proceeds to benefit the team for the upcoming season. This will take place in the parking lot of the old Shoprite building from 5-8pm on Halloween night, October 31.

Southern Shave and Brew Co. is going to be setting up at the Bash this year. They will be offering a special Halloween themed menu, including 4 sno cone, 5 frappe & 3 milkshake flavor options.

Small Town Inflatables, LLC, will be joining the 2021 Bash! Best of all, they are going to let everyone enjoy their bouncy houses and slide for FREE!!

Carthage Dominos will be setup with their mobile pizza unit at the Halloween Bash this year. They will be cooking up some fresh cheese and pepperoni pizza on site beginning at 4pm. One Pizza Slice (1/4 Pizza) will be $3 each and a Whole Large Pizza will be $12 each. Cash only – ATM available.

Over 40 businesses, churches, and organizations have signed up to participate in the 2021 Gordonsville Halloween Bash!

If your business, organization, or church is interested participating in the event by either coming to setup a booth to hand out candy, participating in the touch-a-truck experience, or donating a door prize, please send an email to GordonsvilleHalloweenBash@gmail.com. The Gordonsville Events Committee is also inviting individuals or families to come to the event and hand out candy.

To ensure the safety of the hundreds of children and families who will be out enjoying the festivities, a section of Main Street will be closed to through traffic from 4:30 p.m. until 8:00 p.m.

The closed section will span from the Main Street/Hickman Highway/Gordon Drive intersection to the Main Street/Maple Street intersection between the high school and the elementary school.

If you need to get to your home in the closed section, law enforcement officers will be at the barriers to let you through. If you need to travel through Gordonsville, please use Hickman Highway/Oak Drive/Maple Street to bypass the middle of town.

To stay up-to-date on details about the event, visit the Gordonsville Halloween Bash Facebook page.

For more information about the Gordonsville Halloween Bash, please contact 615-489-0572 or email GordonsvilleHalloweenBash@gmail.com.

Come join the fun at Hometown Halloween 2021 aka Jeepers Creepers/Trunk or Treat — Sunday, October 31st 5-9 p.m. Lots of free fun for the whole family. The event will take place on the square in downtown Carthage.

Activities include a maze, costume contest, yard games, inflatables, music and dancing, a chili cook of Jeepers creepers, ghost stories, and a haunted attraction.

The costume contest will feature several categories so make sure to dress up the entire family and get creative!

Signups will start at 5pm and the contest will begin at 7pm.

I think we are most excited to see what pets you all bring to show off!!!!

Prizes: 1st Place Humans will receive an at-home paint kit from Freestyle Canvas

1st Place Pets will get a certificate for 3 free boarding nights at Smith County Animal Clinic

Hometown Halloween is still looking for Donations. The Deadline to be included on the flyer is this Thursday October 21st.

A huge thank you to the sponsors this year! This event is being organized entirely by community members and business owners!

The Pleasant Shade Community Center will host their Fall Expo and Craft Fairon Saturday, November 6, 2021, from 9:00 am until 3:00 pm.

The Pleasant Shade Community Center is located at 743 Pleasant Shade Highway in Pleasant Shade, Tennessee.

If you have any questions, please contact Wesley Rigsby at 615-677-6514 to Ann Gregory at 615-677-6388.

There are tons of exciting events lining up for this year’s trick or treating season. Be sure to mark your calendars and make plans to attend! This year, Carthage First Baptist Church will host a trunk or treat event on Wednesday, October 27th, 2021 from 5:30pm- 7:30pm. The event will be at the church located at 409 Main Street North Carthage, TN 37030.

The evening will feature plenty of candy to fill up your trick or treat bags, good food, and inflatables for the kids to enjoy.

Carthage First Baptist Church would love to see everyone come out and take part to enjoy the season. Everyone is welcome!

Calling all Republicans!!! Please come to the monthly public meeting of the Smith County Republican Party held this month on October 26, 2021 at 7pm. Our speaker this month will be Scott Golden, the Chairman of the Republican Party for the Stare of Tennessee!!!

Location – Walton Hotel – 300 Main St., Carthage, TN 37030

Please come and hear the latest and participate – October 26, 2021 @ 7pm