Texas Rose Festival
Tyler- The undeniable aroma of hundreds of thousands of Tyler roses will soon fill the air in East Texas. October 13-15, the 78th Annual Texas Rose festival, often called Texas’ most beautiful event, will get under way. Make plans to “stop and smell the roses” this month in Tyler, Texas!
Visitors who come to East Texas expecting to see only oil wells and cactus are always surprised and amazed by the flourishing beauty in the Pineywoods. Approximately one-fifth of all commercial rose bushes produced in the United States are grown in Smith County, while over one-half of the nation’s rose bushes are packaged and shipped from this area. The Texas Rose Festival has persevered and evolved into an annual event that attracts thousands of visitors from across the nation.
Hundreds of thousands of roses will be displayed in artful arrangements at the Rose Show, growing in manicured beds in the Rose Garden and covering hundreds of acres in the rose fields. The annual Rose Parade helps kick off the event each year, but is just part of the fun. The festival also includes a Coronation Ball and the East Texas Symphony Orchestra’s “Concert in the Park.”
In 1933, much of the country was in the grips of the Great Depression. However, Tyler was growing and thriving thanks to the Oil Boom in East Texas. Tyler decided to celebrate their prosperity by focusing their attention on the importance of the rose industry in the Tyler area. The Tyler Chamber of Commerce and others organized the first Tyler Rose Festival, and thousands flocked to beautiful East Texas where “everything was coming up roses.” Over the years, the festival has become a Texas Legend. Whereas Texas had always been known for cattle, cotton and oil, the beauty of East Texas inspired a welcomed change. Dignitaries including governors, presidential candidates, First Ladies and others who visited brought national attention to Tyler. And the name soon changed from the Tyler Rose Festival to the Texas Rose Festival.
The Tyler Municipal Rose Garden is a 14-acre mecca for gardeners and flower lovers with over 35,000 bushes, displaying approximately 500 varieties of roses. It is only fitting that the “City of Roses” is home to the nation’s largest Municipal Rose Garden. Local growers have been a mainstay of support for the Garden and for international rose research for many years. Many visitors to the garden are drawn to the one-acre Heritage Rose and Sensory Garden which has antique rose varieties dating from before the Civil War. This popular area contains over 30 varieties of 19th century garden roses. Over 100,000 people from around the world visit the Rose Garden annually.
One of Tyler’s favorite and most beautiful attractions is the Tyler Rose Museum, which has entertained thousands of visitors from the United States and around the world. The Museum is a unique concept that allows the visitors to participate in an unfolding story that chronicles the events of the Festival’s history and the agricultural industry it honors. The many Museum exhibits, including a rose bloom stand and an antique tractor, fascinate visitors of all ages. With quarterly costume changes, the Museum proves to be a source of information and entertainment throughout the year.
Discover the history of the Rose Festival and the rose industry in the Tyler Rose Museum. Interactive exhibits draw you in and make you part of the excitement. Hear the marching band as the floats pass by in the Parade Room. Listen to the recorded voices of former Rose Queens describe their “royal” experience and see the beautiful hand-sewn gowns dating from 1935, with crowns and scepters.
Schedule of Events
Thursday, October 13, 2011
10:30AM – Ribbon Cutting at the Tyler Rose Garden Center (Free Admission)
Friday, October 14, 2011
11:30AM Ladies Luncheon at the CrossWalk at Green Acres (Tickets $50; Speaker – Jenna Welch Bush Hager)
11:30AM Mens Luncheon at the Rose Garden Building (Tickets $50 general admission;
Speaker – Kenneth Winston “Ken” Starr)
3PM- Coronation Matinee at the Cowan Center, at the University of Texas at Tyler (Tickets are $15-$30)
7:30PM- Coronation at the Cowan Center, at the University of Texas at Tyler (Tickets are $25-$60)
Saturday, October 15, 2011
9AM- Rose Parade General Admission seats available on west side of Trinity Mother Frances Rose Stadium (Tickets are $3)
1-3PM- Queen’s Tea at the Tyler Rose Garden, Queen’s Court (Free Admission)
Learn more about the Texas Rose Festival!