The McLoud Blackberry Festival began in the 1940's as a celebration of the end of harvest season for the local cash farm crop, blackberries. Since harvest season was completed just before July 4th, when a community picnic had been held since the town was founded in 1895, the two were combined to create the annual Blackberry festival. The town received national media coverage when the Blackberry Growers Association sent a crate of berries to President Harry Truman. The association disbanded in 1963 due to a poor market and farmers moved on to a more lucrative crop. ​While blackberry farming may no longer be the agricultural strength of McLoud, the festival celebrated each year continues to be an exciting event for the town and draws thousands of attendees from throughout the nation.
