06 Jul 2026 Malvern celebrates 150 years with a festival on July 18

MALVERN — The City of Malvern is gearing up to celebrate its 150th anniversary at Malvern150, a daylong community festival on Saturday, July 18. The event will feature live music, food, shopping, vendors, family-friendly activities and entertainment throughout the city’s historic downtown business district.

The celebration begins at daybreak with the 4-H Pancake Breakfast from 6:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at the First Baptist Life Center, and the Rockport Masonic Lodge #58 Pancake Breakfast from 7:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church Fellowship Hall. 

Beginning at 10 a.m., downtown shopping, vendors, games and activities will open throughout the city’s Main Street entertainment district and at Centennial Park.

The Family Fun Zone, open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., will include a kids’ play area, a foam party, Malvern’s legendary Brick Car Derby, a historical costume contest, a classic car show, a water bouncy house, Arkansas Game and Fish K-9 demonstrations and more.

Competitors are invited to “skate the bricks” as the city’s first-ever skateboard tournament begins at 10 a.m. at the city skatepark on Locust Street.

The Entertainment Zone beside City Hall opens with registration for a baggo tournament beginning at 10 a.m. Live music starts at 12:30 p.m., and the 1943 by Coffee Records Beer Garden opens later that afternoon. 

Arkansas Yarn Co. will celebrate the city’s anniversary in tandem with its part in the ongoing 2026 Arkansas Yarn Crawl, opening its 202 Main Street location from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. A Fashion Show featuring styles from each era of the city’s 150 years begins at 3 p.m. at the Ritz Theater.

Food vendors will open at 10 a.m. along Third Street near Coffee Records, while additional vendors and information booths will be located along Third Street near Classy & Sassy.

Live entertainment begins at noon on the Main Stage with headliners including local young guitar phenom Brady Roseberry, Dino D & the D Train Band, Heart tribute band Even It Up, ABBA-inspired supergroup Waterloo, and the magical onstage Michael Jackson experience I Am King. 

Music for all ages on the Skatepark Stage kicks off at 3 p.m. with Foreshadow, followed by Spa City Youngbloods and Dissentious.

Admission is free and parking will be available at no cost throughout downtown, with event maps and schedules available at information booths. For current updates, visit Facebook “Malvern150.”