Merv Bishop, Chairman Bobby Beattie

Carlton Bridges, Sr.

Bernard Guyton

Karen Harris

Brad Crawford

Wes Foster

Dennis Fowler

Clint Harris

Livia Hazlette

Jan Moss

T. J. Huggin

Richard Jones

Marlon Keller

Craig Patterson

Marc Quick

Joe Craig

Becky Strain

Dennis Stroupe

Mikey Teague

LeighAnn Turner

Ginny Wallace

 

History 

 

From in inauspicious weekend event in 1977 to this year's extravaganza, the South Carolina Peach Festival has become the premier upstate summer event being recognized by The Southeast Tourism Society as one of the Top 20 events in the Southeast during July.

This year, the South Carolina Peach Festival is celebrating its 32nd anniversary. As we pause and reflect, we do so with a smile at the countless events and people that have shaped this festival into what it is today.


The South Carolina Peach Festival first gained national attention in 1978 when volunteers gathered and spent hundreds of hours preparing ingredients in order to bake the World's Largest Peach Pie. In 1981, dedication was held for the largest and juiciest of all peaches, the one million gallon water tank called "The Peachoid" that sits stately along Interstate 85. It serves as the gateway to Gaffney greeting thousands of visitors each day and leaving them with a city landmark etched in their minds. In 1989, the South Carolina Peach Festival broke the Guinness world record for having the most guitarists playing and vocalists singing the same song, "Louie, Louie." The event was broadcast on the nationally syndicated Guinness Records television show.

And there are the concerts. The list of recording artists that have touched the stair steps of the South Carolina Peach Festival stage is too long to mention here, but we will name a few. At the beginning of this decade, in 1990, a new artist had recently embarked on Nashville and made his way to the South Carolina Peach Festival as part of his summer tour. He took the audience at Gaffney High Stadium in his hand and molded them like clay as he sang a new single, "³Friends in Low Places." When he climbed the tower that supported the roof over the stage, they knew his energy was endless. Today, the world knows it too. His name was Garth Brooks. Garth was recently named Artist of the Decade by the Academy of Country Music.

In 1991, the South Carolina Peach Festival welcomed the Country Music Association's Entertainer of the Year, Reba McEntire. Also that year, a man who would later be named Best New Artist and eventually Male Vocalist of the Year, Travis Tritt, performed at PeachFest downtown. In 1995, the South Carolina Peach Festival was one of only a handful of venues that were able to host a stop of the Reunion Tour of country music's most awarded duo, George Jones and Tammy Wynette. That concert shattered all previous festival attendance records.

Other artists who have performed at the South Carolina Peach Festival over the years include George Strait, Aaron Tippin, Charlie Daniels, Merle Haggard, Clay Walker, Bryan White, Terri Clark, Steve Wariner, The Oak Ridge Boys, Mary Chapin Carpenter, T. Graham Brown, Lee Greenwood, Patty Loveless, Sawyer Brown, Ricky Van Shelton, Marty Stewart, and Dwight Yoakam - just to name a few.

This year, like all the years in the past, the South Carolina Peach Festival has something for everyone. From major concerts, sporting events, a giant parade, arts and crafts, and so much more.

The South Carolina Peach Festival doesnıt just represent events, itıs a South Carolina tourism promotion that allows a proud community to prove that united in a common goal, almost anything can be accomplished. As sunny and sweet as the peach itself are our smiles and welcoming arms. As soft as the peach are our hearts brimming with kindness for you, our visiting friends.

So, come join us as we celebrate in festival. 

 

Click here to see a complete list of our past entertainers.