The 80th annual Morton Loggers Jubilee will kick off on Thursday, Aug. 10, with events and competitions being held through Sunday. Logging competition events will include log rolling, ax throwing, tree topping, speed climbing and more.
Known as the “granddaddy of all logging shows,” nobody actually knows when the first one was held, according to the event’s website.
“Some say it was 1937 and some say 1938 when the first Loggers Jubilee was held. It is a question of whose memory is best, as there doesn’t seem to be a permanent record of those early shows,” stated the website.
A number of different people have been credited with creating the Loggers Jubilee, including G.E. Coleman, Ed Baker, Jack Sutherland and J. Longmire. Whoever started it, the idea grew out of the desire for a friendly competition between loggers, which still lives on today to show younger generations how trees were toppled before modern logging equipment was developed.
The schedule for the 80th annual Morton Loggers Jubilee is as follows:
Thursday, Aug. 10
• The 67th annual Morton Loggers Jubilee queen coronation begins at 8 p.m. at Morton High School, 152 Westlake Ave., Morton.
Friday, Aug. 11
• Tours of the Hampton Lumber Mill will run from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. The mill is at 302 state Route 7 in Morton.
• Lawnmower races: Gates open at 4:30 p.m., time trials starts at 6:30 p.m. and racing begins at 7:30 p.m. The races will be held in the Loggers Jubilee arena at 451 Knittles Way in Morton.
Saturday, Aug. 12
• The 10k Loggers Jubilee run: Registration opens at 7 a.m., and the run begins at 8 a.m., starting at Morton High School, 152 Westlake Ave., Morton.
• A jubilee breakfast hosted by the Morton Historical Society will be held from 8 to 11 a.m. at the Morton Senior Center, 103 Westlake Ave., Morton.
• The Morton Museum/Depot Classic Car Show will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Morton Historical Society, 194 Main Ave., Morton. Live music will be played by the band Soul Purpose until 3 p.m.
• Jubilee championship bed races will begin at 11 a.m. on Main Avenue in Morton.
• The Morton Loggers Jubilee grand parade will begin at 11:30 a.m. on Main Avenue in Morton. The parade’s theme is “80 years of memories.”
• The 80th annual Loggers Jubilee logging show: Gates open at 12:30 p.m., and logging starts at 2 p.m. The competition will be at the Loggers Jubilee arena at 451 Knittles Way in Morton.
• ”The Addams Family” musical performance, presented by Centralia College East and the Fire Mountain Arts Council, will start at 7 p.m. at the Roxy Theater, 233 W. Main Ave., Morton.
• The Jjbilee Saturday night dance will be held from 7 to 11 p.m. in the Gas Plus Chevron parking lot at 498 Second Street, Morton. Live music will be played by the band Still Got It.
Sunday, Aug. 13
• The 80th annual Loggers Jubilee logging show conclusion: Gates open at 11 a.m., and logging starts at noon in the Loggers Jubilee arena.
In addition to these events, the Morton Loggers Jubilee flea market will be open all four days at the Jubilee Park, located north of the Loggers Jubilee arena on Knittles Way.
For more information on the 80th annual Morton Loggers Jubilee, visit https://loggersjubilee.com/.
