Event Spotlight · Fall 2026
Circleville Pumpkin Show 2026: Giant Pumpkins, Parades and a 6-Foot Pie
For four days every October, a town of about 12,000 people in central Ohio closes its downtown streets and fills them with pumpkins: more than 100,000 pounds of pumpkins, squash and gourds, plus rides, marching bands, pumpkin donuts and a pie six feet across. The Circleville Pumpkin Show runs October 21 - 24, 2026, and the organizers call it the "Greatest Free Show on Earth" because there’s no admission charge. Here’s what to know.
How a mayor’s sidewalk display became Ohio’s oldest festival
The first Pumpkin Show, in October 1903, was one man’s idea. According to the show’s history page, George R. Haswell, then Circleville’s mayor and superintendent of the water works, set up a small exhibit in front of his office on West Main Street. He wanted to bring "country folks and city folks" together, so he invited farmers to show off their best produce downtown. Corn fodder and pumpkins, many carved into jack-o’-lanterns, made up most of the decorations, and people started calling it "the pumpkin show."
Neighboring merchants joined in the next year, and the show grew. The first shows covered about three city blocks; the fact sheet says today’s covers more than eight. It was combined with the county fair until 1946, when the fair moved to the fairgrounds and the Circleville Pumpkin Show, Inc. was formed. The mayor is still president of the organization in honor of the founder. The show is run by volunteers and pays its own way, down to reimbursing the city for extra police. The fact sheet calls it Ohio’s oldest and largest festival, and 2026 is the 119th.
The main event: the giant pumpkin weigh-in
Opening day, Wednesday, starts with the Giant Pumpkin Weigh-In at the center of town, at Court and Main. The 2025 schedule had it at 8 AM, so check the 2026 schedule for the time. The winners are huge. In 2025, Mike and Dusti Helberg took first place with a 1,972-pound pumpkin, ahead of the Liggett family at 1,663 pounds and Brandon Wiggins at 1,567.
The Liggett name comes up a lot. The fact sheet’s list of past winners shows Dr. Robert Liggett taking first place eight times between 2004 and 2014, including a 1,964-pound pumpkin in 2014 that’s marked as the record. (That list stops at 2015.) The show’s big street display of pumpkins, squash and gourds is on North Court Street, just north of Main.
Pumpkin everything, including a 400-pound pie
The show’s FAQ says most of the food is pumpkin-related, and it isn’t kidding. The list includes pumpkin pie, donuts, cookies, burgers, taffy, ice cream, cake, soup, waffles, cream puffs, fudge and milkshakes, and the fact sheet adds pancakes, brownies and pumpkin blossoms. Organizers estimate about 23,000 pumpkin pies and more than 100,000 pumpkin donuts sell over the four days.
The famous one isn’t for eating. Every year Lindsey’s Bakery bakes a pumpkin pie six feet across and weighing more than 400 pounds, and displays it at the bakery at 127 W. Main Street. The fact sheet gives the recipe: 100 pounds of cooked pumpkin, 40 pounds of sugar, 26 gallons of milk and 15 dozen eggs, baked for six hours and cooled for six more. When the show ends, the pie goes to local hogs.
Many of the food booths are run by more than 30 local churches, schools, booster clubs and civic groups, and for many of them it’s the biggest fundraiser of the year. Alcohol isn’t sold on the streets. The 2025 schedule had kids’ and adults’ pumpkin pie eating contests on Saturday.
Seven parades, plus one more this year
The Pumpkin Show holds seven parades, each with its own theme, and the fact sheet says more than 40 floats and 50 bands take part. The 2026 schedule from pumpkinshow.com:
- Wednesday, October 21: Little Miss Pumpkin Show Parade at 3:30 PM; Miss Pumpkin Show Parade at 8 PM
- Thursday, October 22: Baby Parade at 3:30 PM; Bands & Youth Organizations at 8 PM
- Friday, October 23: Pet Parade at 3:30 PM; Lodges, Civic & Fraternal Organizations at 8 PM
- Saturday, October 24: Ohio Festivals & Events Association Queens Parade at 8 PM
This year there’s one more. For America’s 250th, the Pickaway County Visitors Bureau says the week opens early on Tuesday, October 20, with activities at Pumpkin Show Park from 5 PM and a "Pumpkin Show Celebrates 250 Years of Agriculture" parade at 7 PM. It will feature farm equipment from across the past 250 years, livestock, FFA units and marching bands. Look for patriotic touches all week, from red, white and blue pumpkin displays to a downtown window-decorating theme called "Red, White and Winkie."
The fact sheet says the best spot to watch is along East and West Franklin Street. If you can’t make it, the show streams its parades on a parade cam.
More to see between parades
- Contests. The show lists Little Miss and Miss Pumpkin Show, baby and pet contests, pumpkin pie eating, a pumpkin toss, a Big Wheel race, an egg toss and hog calling.
- Exhibits. Canned goods, baked goods, flowers, fruits and vegetables and an art show fill the Watt Street Pumpkin Show Building, and a home arts and crafts show is held in the building on Franklin Street.
- Rides. About 25 to 30 amusement rides are set up right in the streets. Discount ride tickets and wristbands are sold online ahead of the show.
- The pumpkin water tower. On Town Street, a million-gallon water tower built in 1976 was repainted in 1997 to look like a pumpkin, stem and all.
Parking, shuttles and practical tips
There are no gates or tickets. Parking is mostly run by local organizations and clubs as fundraisers, and two shuttles run for 2026, according to pumpkinshow.com:
- PICCA and Amvets: Park at Amvets, 818 Tarlton Road. Shuttles drop off at Pickaway and Mound Streets, Wednesday through Saturday from 11 AM to 11 PM, for $10 per car, including parking and the round-trip shuttle.
- Ohio Christian University Baseball Team: Park across from OCU at 1476 Lancaster Pike. Shuttles drop off at 235 East Main Street, Tuesday from 4 to 10 PM and Wednesday through Saturday from 10 AM to 10 PM. Round trip is $5 per person, $3 for ages 3 to 6, and free for kids 2 and under.
More than 70 portable restrooms are set up around the show, and an information booth sits at the center of the show next to the pumpkin display. After Wednesday’s opening ceremonies, activities start at 10 AM each day. The Pickaway County Visitors Bureau’s online Pumpkin Show Companion collects shuttle, lodging and mobility scooter rental information.
Around Circleville: Columbus and the Hocking Hills
The visitors bureau describes Pickaway County as about 25 to 30 minutes south of Columbus on US-23 and an easy drive from Chillicothe and the Hocking Hills region, which makes Circleville a good base. The official Hocking Hills travel site says Hocking Hills State Park includes six distinct natural areas: Ash Cave, Cantwell Cliffs, Cedar Falls, Lake Logan, Old Man’s Cave, and Whispering Cave with Hemlock Bridge and Rock House. In late October, the cliffs and gorges make a good day trip before or after the show.
Also on the calendar nearby
Two more events on our calendar fall during the Pumpkin Show:
German Village Farmers Market
A Saturday market in Columbus’s German Village, per Experience Columbus. It’s an easy add-on for Saturday, October 24, before the Queens Parade that night.
The MAiZE at Little Darby Creek
A corn maze with hayrides, a pumpkin patch and a Field of Fright on some nights. The farm’s hours are Friday 5 to 10 PM, Saturday noon to 10 PM and Sunday noon to 6 PM, weather permitting.
Before you go
Dates, times and an add-to-calendar link: Circleville Pumpkin Show on USA Fest Bot
For more parades this season, see our parades page.
Parade times, contest schedules and shuttle details can change. Confirm with the organizer at pumpkinshow.com before you go.
Quick answers
When is the 2026 Circleville Pumpkin Show?
October 21 - 24, 2026, in downtown Circleville, Ohio, per our listing. The Pickaway County Visitors Bureau says special opening activities start Tuesday, October 20.
Does it cost anything to get in?
No. There are no gates or admission charge, which is why the organizers call it the "Greatest Free Show on Earth." Rides, food and parking cost extra.
When is the giant pumpkin weigh-in?
On opening day, Wednesday, at Court and Main. It was at 8 AM in 2025; check pumpkinshow.com for the 2026 time.
How big is the giant pie?
Lindsey’s Bakery’s pie is six feet across and weighs more than 400 pounds, per the show’s fact sheet. It’s on display at the bakery at 127 W. Main Street.
USA Fest Bot is not affiliated with this event or any event mentioned here and does not sell tickets. Found a detail that has changed? Send a correction.