The City of Newton celebrates its 20th Loose Caboose Festival

MERIDIAN, Miss. (WTOK) -The city of Newton celebrated an annual festival Saturday that is now going 20 years strong.

The Loose Caboose Arts and Crafts Festival welcomed people from around East and Central Mississippi to downtown Newton. Meridian native Emily White took the stage.

The festival has shown significant growth in recent years. Three years ago, 103 vendors attended, and this year, there were 141. This growth impacts the economy of a small town like Newton, which hosts these yearly festivals.

We talked with Newton Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Nene Hammond about the event.

“A lot of the vendors are from out of town, so I get to meet people from Alabama, Louisiana, we have people from Tennessee, of course, we have our local vendors, and we love our Mississippi vendors. It boosts the local economy for the day, and it brings people together who might not get to see each other; it’s just our big day,” said Newton Chamber of Commerce Executive Director, Nena Hammond.

Organizers are excited to do it all again next year.

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