Forestburg Watermelon Festival: 45 Years of Small-Town Texas Tradition

Forestburg sits on FM 455 in southeastern Montague County, a community of roughly 50 permanent residents surrounded by sandy-soil farmland that, it turns out, grows excellent watermelons. Every August, that population multiplies many times over when the Forestburg Watermelon Festival rolls around — an event that, as of 2025, has been running for 45 years.

How It Started

The festival began in the late 1970s or early 1980s as a modest community fundraiser — the kind of thing that starts small and grows because no one wants to stop doing it. Over four-plus decades, it expanded from a local event into a regional draw, attracting day-trippers from across Montague County, from the DFW metroplex, and from Wichita Falls. The programming grew with it.

What Happens at the Festival

The core events are watermelon contests: a heaviest-watermelon competition (records have exceeded 100 pounds in some years), seed-spitting distance contests in multiple age divisions (records exceeding 70 feet have been documented), and speed eating. There is a parade through town, live music, vendor booths, children's activities, junior agricultural exhibits, and community meals. Admission has historically been free or low-cost.

The heaviest-watermelon contest draws specialized growers competing seriously. The seed-spitting is the crowd-pleaser — distance contests by age group, open to anyone willing to pucker up and try. A princess crowning and parade winners round out the civic-event layer underneath the agricultural spectacle.

Forestburg's Watermelon Heritage

Forestburg's identity as watermelon country is genuine, not invented for the festival. The community's sandy soils are well-suited to watermelon cultivation, and local growers have raised the crop for generations. Watermelons became one of the specialty crops that survived in the post-cotton era — a niche that cotton-country farming never had. The festival both celebrates and reinforces that heritage; local growers are the major participants in the heaviest-watermelon contest.

The town itself — originally called Horn Hill, then Forest Hill, renamed Forestburg when the Texas post office rejected the duplication — has been an unincorporated community since the 1870s. Its population peaked around 1900 at 372 residents before declining through the mid-century. The Watermelon Festival has given the present-day community of roughly 50 an annual moment that makes it, briefly, one of the busiest crossroads in Forestburg history.

Getting There

The festival is typically held in August during peak watermelon season on a multi-day weekend format. FM 455 connects Forestburg to Bowie to the west and Saint Jo to the northeast. Check local event listings in the Bowie News or the Fairs and Festivals directory for the current year's specific dates — they vary slightly from year to year. For more on the county's agricultural heritage, see the watermelons history page.