Like other fairs and festivals across the nation, the 2020 annual Catface Country Turpentine Festival is canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. The festival, in what would have been its 39th year, was scheduled for this coming Saturday, Oct. 3.

This is the first time in history the annual celebration has been canceled, said Portal Heritage Society President Tim Cook. The festival is hosted by the Portal Heritage Society as its main fundraiser.

After having to cancel its spring circus in March due to COVID-19, losing the income from the Turpentine Festival “is a pretty big hit,” he said.

“But with people coming from all over and vendors coming from places like Florida, we have to be safe.”

The festival celebrates the rich agricultural heritage of the small, northwest Bulloch County town of Portal, where turpentine harvesting and distilling was once a booming business. The festival’s official name, “Portal Catface Country Turpentine Festival,” comes from the slash marks resembling cat’s whiskers that turpentiners made on the pine trees to gather sap.

The festival centers around the E.C. Carter Turpentine Still, one of only two remaining working stills in the state. 

Cook said other events are tentatively scheduled and will be announced later, but losing the circus and festival in one year is difficult. COVID-19 also caused the group to cancel its annual barbecue sale fundraiser.

“The circus pays our insurance for the year,” he said, and the festival funds the group’s upkeep of the still and Portal’s historical museums, including an old drug store and home that are on a national registry.

The pandemic has not only affected its fundraisers, but the Portal Heritage Society has experienced a lull in meetings as well, as members take precautions against the virus, Cook said. “We hope we can get it all going again next year.”

Herald reporter Holli Deal Saxon may be reached at (912) 489-9414.