T-L Photo/JENNIFER COMPSTON-STROUGH Members of the Belmont County Tourism Council hold their monthly meeting Tuesday and discuss plans for the Barnesville Pumpkin Festival this week. Seated from left are George Diab, President John Rataiczak, Dan Frizzi, Scott Wilson, Fiscal Officer Mary Ann Domyan and Executive Director Jackee Pugh. Rataiczak is sporting an orange festival coat once owned and worn by the late Eugene “Doc” Householder, an instrumental part of the event and the county’s first tourism director.

BARNESVILLE — Will records be shattered? Legends made?

Either way, you can bet the crowd will be cheering for all who bring their enormous produce to the Giant Pumpkin Weigh-Off in an effort to be crowned king this evening.

From 6-9 p.m. today, one of the most unusual traffic jams you will ever see will form on North Chestnut Street in Barnesville as growers wait their turn to place their prized pumpkins on the scale. Trucks and trailers loaded with gigantic gourds will pull in one after another to allow a heavy equipment operator to scoop up the cream of their crop and place it down gently on Main Street to be weighed.

“Let’s make this weigh-off one for the history books!” The Barnesville Pumpkin Festival Committee urges in its annual publication that outlines all that the four-day event has to offer.

The festival doesn’t officially get underway until Thursday afternoon, but the unofficial kickoff on Wednesday draws large crowds of spectators and also attracts a vast audience to view the livestream of the event online.

So what’s the big deal?

The Barnesville Pumpkin Festival, celebrating its 61st year this September, is a place where local, state, nation and even world records are made. Last year’s winner, grown by Lee and Derrick Zappa of Mercer, Pennsylvania, was a whopper that tipped the scale at 2,196 pounds, but that wasn’t heavy enough to be a record-setter.

Here’s a look at some of the heaviest King Pumpkins that have reigned over the festivities:

2022 – Erik Gunstrom of Harrison City, Pennsylvania, raised a 2,405-pound pumpkin that set a Pennsylvania state record.

2021 – Jeff Theil of Dillonvale grew a 2,195-pounder that set an Ohio state record.

2017 – Todd and Donna Skinner raised a 2,150-pound king that set an Ohio state record. That same year, the Skinners – who raise their pumpkins within the village limits – also earned the title of 2017 World Wide Great Pumpkin Commonwealth Grower of the Year after raising the three largest pumpkins of the year with the heaviest combined weight. The Skinners’ three prized pumpkins of 2017 weighed in at 1,621.5 pounds, 2,112 pounds and 2,150 pounds for a combined total weight of 5,883.5 pounds.

What will the results of tonight’s weigh-off be? We will have to wait and see.

The festival’s opening ceremonies are scheduled for 5 p.m. Thursday at the corner of Main and Chestnut streets, where the newly crowned King Pumpkin and runners-up will be on display. A full schedule of activities, contests, displays, vendors, carnival rides and more continues daily through Sunday, when the festival closes with an auction of unclaimed produce entries at 5 p.m.