Coon Dog Graveyard Celebration

Festival Location: Tuscumbia, AL, USA

Festival State: Alabama Festivals

Festival Type: Bizarre Festivals

By: © Nelson Taylor 2009

This event isn't for everyone. It's only for those who are truly committed to experiencing the real outer edges of America. Every Labor Day, the Tennessee Valley Coon Hunters Association (TVCHA), throws a bash at the only coon dog graveyard in the nation. Pardon? You heard me. Since September 4, 1937, when Key Underwood buried his legendary coon dog Troop, over one-hundred coon dogs have been buried in this Freedom Hills cemetery. (Nobody seems to know the exact number.) Every year, coon hunters and their dogs show up -- flowers in hand and mouth -- to pay respects to their long-departed brethren.

What exactly is coon hunting? Well, it's a dying trade. Because there is no longer a demand for the pelts or the meat, coon hunting is now considered more a sport than anything else. In other words, coon hunters can't make enough cash to make a living. Now they make their money any way they can. O'Neal Bolton, a born and bred coon killer and spokesperson for the event, tries to get money out of me for an interview. I, of course, decline his offer. In a Southern drawl so thick you could spread it on Wonder, he says, "Well, just wait a cotton pickin' minute. You going to sell this book for money ain't you?" I nod, don't say a word. "Oh, well, the hell with it. I'll tell you. You see, cooning is kind of like a ballgame. You see if your dog gonna do it to it to his tonight or not. They race each other for the coons. You hunt with your buddies." Now I can't get him to shut up. He goes on to tell me there's plenty of homemade wine over here, bluegrass music over there, a liars contest right yonder, not to mention some good grub later on. Coon burgers? "No," Bolton says. "But we used to have a barbecue coon supper years ago, but this younger generation don't want to do nothing no more. Them coons eat good." Be careful, the admission price is whatever they can get out of you.