# Event Details

- **Event Name**: Civilian Conservation Corps Festival: Celebrating nature, history and the legacy of the CCC
- **Event Start and End Date**: Sat, 14 Feb, 2026 at 10:00 am – Sat, 14 Feb, 2026 at 04:00 pm
- **Event Description**: Join us at the 39th annual CCC Festival at Highlands Hammock State Park from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, February 14, 2026! The park preserves wilderness, history and the legacy of the CCC. The festival celebrates history, culture, art, nature, music, sharing traditions and skills.

Park admission is free! See * below. The festival is free except for tram, pony and carriage rides, food and purchases.

Information about the 2026 festival is updated as details are confirmed. Learn about more activities and times on the Friends of Highland Hammock Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/fhhsp) or visit https://CCCfest2026.eventbrite.com. 

TALKS AND MUSIC:

· 10:15 to 11: Golden Era Jazz Band will play numbers from the Great American Songbook of the 1920s, 30s and 40s. Music in the Park Stage.

· 11:10 to 11:40: Park Welcome and Announcements. Music in the Park Stage.

· 11:45 to 12:30: Golden Era Jazz Band will play numbers from the Great American Songbook of the 1920s, 30s and 40s. Music in the Park Stage.

· Noon to 12:45: CCC Museum Curator David Schmidt, Highlands Hammock State Park: FDR & His CCC: Conservation in America. CCC Museum.
David Schmidt will examine the origins and achievements of the Civilian Conservation Corps, one of President Franklin Roosevelt’s most successful New Deal Era programs. The CCC program had an enormous impact on resource management and stewardship of public lands during the Great Depression and has had a resounding impact for more than 80 years.

· 1 to 1:30: Clyde Butcher, America’s Preeminent Landscape Photographer, Venice Gallery & Studio and Big Cypress Gallery in Ochopee: Adventures in the Hammock. Music in the Park Stage.
Clyde Butcher has a longstanding relationship with Highlands Hammock and is well acquainted with the Ancient Hammock and the Cypress Swamp. Through his many years of repeated “exposures” on these trails, he has preserved their inherent nature through all the seasons and after weathering storms.

· 1:30 to 2:15: Folk music virtuoso John McClure will perform traditional folk ballads and a selection of musical numbers featuring bouncy banjo, guitar and the mandolin. John is an attorney in Sebring who is self-taught and naturally gifted musician who played with four other family members in Back Porch Revival. The band played the Florida Folk Festival for 30 years. Music in the Park Stage.

· 2 to 2:45: Archaeologist John Goss, Bradenton, Florida: Indigenous South Florida Peoples and Their Use of Natural Resources. CCC Museum.
This program explores historical and archaeological accounts of Native Americans in southern Florida and examines the effect of natural resources in shaping their culture and the impacts of their culture on the natural resources unique to Florida.

· 2:30 to 3:30: Folksinger and storyteller Vgo will perform songs from the Depression years and the 1940s together with a mix of Blues and comedy peppered with anecdotes about the songs and instruments, with a preference for guitar, banjo, mandolin, violin and dulcimer. He resides in Arcadia and plays lead banjo for the Gulf Coast Banjo Society. Originally from Chevy Chase, Maryland, this highly adept musician taught himself string instruments at the age of 11. In the 1960s, he learned the Blues while observing Mississippi John Hurt, Son House and others. Vgo most recently played at the Ormond Beach Celtic Festival and has performed at the Florida Folk Festival for more than 40 years. Music in the Park Stage.

HERITAGE DEMONSTRATIONS:

• Blacksmithing: Gerry Jamison will be at his forge demonstrating blacksmithing. This former farrier excels at creating steel roses, fashioning snakes from rebar and rattlesnakes from rasps. Visitors who bid on a silent auction item will take home a steel cross at the end of the afternoon. Panther Pavilion.

• Hewing: Charlie Brown, the Park Manager from Mike Roess Gold Hold Branch State Park, and Paul and Mark Worthington, a father and son team who are members of the park’s Citizen Support Organization, will be chopping, cutting and shaping wood using pine logs from Highlands Hammock. CCC boys did hewing with axes to make logs into lumber and wooden beams. Visitors including children may try their hand at this ancient woodworking art and take home a log “cookie.” Picnic Area.

• Frontier Work Camp: Joe Noto and Michele Noto will set up a traditional work camp from the 1900s and demonstrate woodworking with old hand tools, coffee grinding and butter churning. Visitors may grind their own coffee and take it home. The Notos are reenactors at Paynes Creek Historic State Park. Picnic Area.

• Weaving: Pam Perry who most recently volunteered at Dudley Farms Historic State Park and is now a member of the DeSoto Historical Society will demonstrate weaving on a loom. Handmade quilts by folk artist Karen Smoke will also be displayed. Alligator Pavilion.

• Flywheelers Antique Car Show: Members of the Florida Flywheelers will display antique cars and tractors from the 1930s to the late 1940s. Music in the Park Circle.


CHILDREN WILL ENJOY:

• 1:30: Discovery Nature Walk (children 5 to 13) to explore and learn about plants, animals, habitats, niches, food chains, animal adaptations and more! Children will discover adventures in nature and sharpen skills to explore nature in their own backyards. This hour-long hike will be led by Interpretive Volunteer Marilyn Blair. The hike will depart from the Wild Orange Trail behind the Hammock Inn.

• Engage in nature exhibits provided by Highlands Hammock State Park and Archbold Biological Research Station.

• See native animals in the care of the Calusa Nature Center.

• Learn about park habitats by observing wildlife photos and finding the match of birds, butterflies, reptiles and mammals within the murals of four habitats found in the park including Hammock, Cypress Swamp, Pine Flatwoods and Scrub.

• Play traditional games, including cat’s cradle, hopscotch, jacks, tiddlywinks, pickup sticks, and marbles.

• Explore the nature and history of Highlands Hammock State Park by taking a CCC Festival Scavenger Hunt geared for families with children of all ages.

• Children will be thrilled to ride on a huge horse, an American Mammoth Jackstock Donkey, or a very tall mule ($5 per child). Adults and families may enjoy wagon rides ($10 per person). VIP Custom Carriage will have the animals at the Owl Pavilion. Wagon rides will depart from the Picnic Area Entrance Gate.

ACTIVITIES FOR ALL

• Guided, narrated 90-minute tram tours. Tours depart from the Hammock Inn, run along the Loop Road beneath the densely shaded hammock, pause on a wooden bridge within a cypress swamp, continue through open pinelands and return along South Canal through a wetland of bay and cypress trees where alligators, turtles, herons, ibis, egrets and the occasional otter may be observed. Ticket cost is $15 per adult and $10 for children six to 12 years old. Children aged five and younger are free. Tickets may be purchased on the day of the tour or one day in advance. Call the Hammock Inn (daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.) at 863-402-0061 for tram departure information.

• Enjoy Highlands Hammock State Park where wilderness and history are preserved. The park has more rare and endemic species than any other Florida State Park and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Highlands Hammock is known for its magnificent hammock and the Civilian Conservation Corps Museum. To help lift the United States out of the Great Depression, Franklin D. Roosevelt established the CCC in 1933 as part of the New Deal Program. Single men between the ages of 18 and 25 could enlist in work programs to improve America’s public lands, forests and parks. The museum, established in 1994, is located in a restored CCC building and contains exhibits highlighting the efforts of the 50,000 young men who served in the state from 1933 to 1941.

• Adults and families may enjoy wagon rides ($10 per person). VIP Custom Carriage will depart from the Picnic Area Entrance Gate.

• Arts and crafts vendors, demonstrations and displays by government agencies and organizations concerned with local history or nature and the environment are ongoing. Some exhibitors and vendors not listed elsewhere include: 
  • Florida Highwaymen Art 
  • Highlands County Audubon Society
  • Heartland Cultural Alliance
  • FWC Ridge Rangers 
  • Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership

• Food and refreshments are provided by the Hammock Inn Camp Store and onsite food truck vendors.

* "To commemorate America’s 250th anniversary, Governor Ron DeSantis designated George Washington’s birthday as a state holiday. In addition, in honor of Washington’s birthday, Florida State Parks will be offering free admission to all state parks, excluding Skyway Fishing Pier State Park and Olustee Battlefield Historic State Park, from Feb. 13-16, 2026." Admission to Highlands Hammock State Park is usually $6 per vehicle up to 8 people, $4 per vehicle with one person and $2 per bicyclist and pedestrian.
- **Event URL**: https://allevents.in/sebring/civilian-conservation-corps-festival-celebrating-nature-history-and-the-legacy-of-the-ccc/200029473169731
- **Event Categories**: festivals, music, entertainment, trips-adventures, art, car-shows, jazz, live-music, food-drinks, comedy, holiday
- **Interested Audience**: 
  - total_interested_count: 1005

## Ticket Details


## Event venue details

- **city**: Sebring
- **state**: FL
- **country**: United States
- **location**: 5931 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872-7408, United States
- **lat**: 27.46432
- **long**: -81.5395
- **full address**: 5931 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872-7408, United States

## Event gallery

- **Alt text**: Civilian Conservation Corps Festival: Celebrating nature, history and the legacy of the CCC
  - **Image URL**: https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events5/banners/6a850de3b35995fbe45c2191310ab851ada6855bb079939f5d0ad6dc5841a98f-rimg-w1200-h1528-dc1b1815-gmir?v=1770939937

## FAQs

- **Q**: When and where is Civilian Conservation Corps Festival: Celebrating nature, history and the legacy of the CCC being held?
  - **A:** Civilian Conservation Corps Festival: Celebrating nature, history and the legacy of the CCC takes place on Sat, 14 Feb, 2026 at 10:00 am to Sat, 14 Feb, 2026 at 04:00 pm at 5931 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872-7408, United States.
- **Q**: Who is organizing Civilian Conservation Corps Festival: Celebrating nature, history and the legacy of the CCC?
  - **A:** Civilian Conservation Corps Festival: Celebrating nature, history and the legacy of the CCC is organized by Friends of Highlands Hammock State Park.
- **Q**: Who is this event for? Is it right for me?
  - **A:** Civilian Conservation Corps Festival: Celebrating nature, history and the legacy of the CCC is ideal for car enthusiasts, auto fans, and anyone passionate about classic, exotic, or custom vehicles. Whether you're a first-time attendee or a longtime enthusiast in Sebring, this event is thoughtfully curated to deliver a standout experience worth every moment. With 1,000+ people already showing interest, this is clearly an event worth adding to your calendar - don't miss out.

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