The Sorghum Festival for Tipton-Haynes is developed around the need for sweeteners for foods in the past. Sugar was really expensive to get sent all the way up from the Caribbean and sugar cane could not grow up here. Sorghum is a different variety of this plant that can grow in our soils and produces Sorghum Molasses. The process is the same as you harvest the cane, crush it for the juices, and then boil the juice into a sticky molasses. This can then be used to sweeten just about anything you cook. We do all of this process on site, growing the cane in the garden, crushing the cane with our mill and a local volunteer’s mule, and then boiling it in our furnace.

Also, with this event we have a biscuit breakfast with many fixings to use the molasses on. The breakfast allows the public to get a taste of all that we are making just outside the visitor center. The event continues throughout the afternoon and evening with several local bluegrass and old time bands. Local vendors, food trucks, Ford Model A car show, hit and miss engines and more will allow visitors to enjoy the site all day.

There is an admission of $8.00 per adult for Breakfast, $6.00 for kids 12 and under. Breakfast starts at 8:00am.