Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Diamond Festival This Weekend In Murfreesboro

Murfreesboro, home of Crater of Diamonds State Park, will host its annual Diamond Festival on October 9-10. Festivities will be held on the courthouse square in downtown Murfreesboro.

On Friday, October 9, beginning at 10 a.m., vendors including arts and crafts dealers will be set up on the square.

On Saturday, October 10, beginning at 8 a.m., the vendors and arts and crafts dealers will start off an activity-packed day.

At 10 a.m. a parade will start at Piggly Wiggly and end at the square. A band concert will be held at 11 a.m. followed by a pet show at 2 p.m. Following the pet show will be a diamond dig.

In the afternoon from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., a sheriff's debate will take place. An arm wrestling event will follow from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. A music program will begin at 7 p.m., plus a cake walk.

The day's activities will also include rides for small children and a basketball throw.

"Crater of Diamonds State Park will join in the Murfreesboro Diamond Festival, celebrating the diamonds of Pike County, Arkansas," Mike Hall, superintendent of Crater of Diamonds State Park, said.

He said that Shirley and Larry Strawn's 'one-in-a-billion' perfect diamond will be on display at the park visitor information on Saturday, October 10, and Sunday, October 11, from 10 a.m. until 12 noon, and from 2 p.m. until 4 p.m. on both days.

According to Hall, Shirley Strawn of Murfreesboro discovered the gem in the autumn of 1990 at the Crater of Diamonds.

The Strawns recently had their diamond cut by Lazare Kaplan International of new York. The finished gem is a 1.09-carat diamond that has been graded by the American Gem Society as the most perfect a diamond can achieve. The gem is valued at $33,700.

The gem will be set in a special Arkansas-inspired ring setting designed and created by Underwood's Fine Jewelers of Fayetteville.

Crater of Diamonds State Park is the world's only diamond site where the public may search for diamonds and others gems and keep any stones that are found regardless of value. Over 20,000 diamonds have been discovered by lucky visitors. Prospectors search a 36-acre field, the eroded surface of an ancient gem-bearing volcanic pipe.

Murfreesboro is located in southwest Arkansas in Pike County. Crater of Diamonds State Park is located two miles southeast of Murfreesboro on State Highway 301.

For further information, call 870- 285-3113.