KINGWOOD, W.Va. (WBOY) — The Preston County Buckwheat Festival kicks off with this year’s first buckwheat cakes and sausage dinner Wednesday evening, but that’s not the only reason you should stop by between Sept. 27 and Oct. 1.
Parades, a carnival and vendors are all scheduled to be at the festival, but there are a few unique things that you will definitely want to check out.
Buckwheat Cakes (Obviously)
Even though it is one of the largest festivals in the county, the main draw for the Buckwheat Festival is definitely the buckwheat cakes. The Kingwood Volunteer Fire Department hosts the dinners, which include buckwheat cakes made from scratch with locally sourced buckwheat flour and sausage with coffee or chocolate milk to drink. The meal costs $7 for kids age 3-12 and $12 for adults. The buckwheat cake dinners will be offered at the festival from:
- 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday
- 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Thursday
- 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Friday
- 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Saturday
- 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Sunday
If you’ve never had buckwheat cakes before, they are made from locally farmed buckwheat—a grain, similar to quinoa, that farmers in Preston County began growing during the Great Depression. It is ground into flour to make buckwheat cakes, which are similar to pancakes and served with syrup but are darker and less sweet than usual pancakes with a more earthy flavor.
Livestock
Livestock shows and contests dominate the schedule for the festival, just like many other West Virginia county festivals. In the multiple barns at the festival, you can enjoy the Sheep Showmanship Contest Market Lamb Show and Goat Showmanship Contest Market Goat Show on Wednesday; Swine Showmanship Contest & Market Swine Show and Purebred Sheep Show/Breeding Goat Show/Dairy Goat Show on Thursday; and Lamb Dressing Contest (Cow Palace) and Beef Showmanship Contest and Supreme Champion Showman on Friday. Additionally, the Youth Livestock Award Ceremony and Sale are scheduled for Saturday. A full schedule is available here.
The Big Game
Instead of playing on Friday like usual, the Preston High School Knights football team will play at 4 p.m. on Thursday during the festival. Although the Knights have had a rough start to their season with only one win and four losses, the community is expected to really rally together for this game at Knight Field against Woodrow Wilson (4-1).
Keep an eye out, because you might even see a 12 News SportsZone reporter at the game.
Music
The main music concerts for the festival will take place from 4:30 to 10:00 p.m. on Friday and 3:00 to 10:00 p.m. on Saturday. The Davisson Brothers, Dylan Schneider, Jess Kellie Adams, Tucker Knisell, Clay Justice, Mikele Buck Band and Moonlight Drive are all scheduled to perform. Many of the performers are West Virginia natives but all will bring lively country music to the festival.
In addition to the performing artists, there is also a karaoke night scheduled for Thursday at the festival and an open mic scheduled for Sunday. A full schedule of entertainment is available at the Buckwheat Festival website.
