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WELCOME TO DEEP ROOTS!

*a community driven celebration of music, art and food presented by Milledgeville Mainstreet*

Milledgeville is a destination!

“The Deep Roots Festival is a cultural arts and music festival that is located in historic downtown Milledgeville and showcases local, regional, and national talents, artists, and vendors. It beckons travelers from all over with an antique car show, artist market, a KidZone and live entertainment ranging from country and singer songwriter to electronica & rock-and-roll. The festival will also once again hold a sanctioned Memphis BBQ Network cook-off contest featuring a People’s Choice award that will draw BBQ connoisseurs from around the Southeast.”

-http://www.milledgevillemainstreet.com/play/deep-roots/

My ethnographic research into the Deep Roots festivals will help myself and others come to a deeper understanding of the influences, purposes and intended and unintended consequences of this annual festival. This site includes an exciting historical archive of Georgia’s original capitol by investigating the original and present-day cultural patterns and shifts in the Deep Roots planning, execution and aftermath.  Please check out the interactive time line documenting from the inspiration of this festival in 1995 to its first realization twelve years ago through notable milestones on its journey to 2016. There is ample previously recorded material documented by other Georgia College & State University current and former students, online contributors and community participants featured in this research. My favorite part of this site is the interactive map that shows what parts of Milledgevile, the sweet town I call home, are embedded in the Deep Roots Festival.

-http://www.milledgevillemainstreet.com/play/deep-roots/

The purpose of Deep Roots Festival is to stimulate the economy of Milledgeville, specifically the downtown district; to provide a diverse set of activities that provide a sense of togetherness for the Milledgeville community; and, to present Milledgeville as an appealing destination for culture and business.

“The Main Street Four-Point Approach is a community-driven, self-help comprehensive methodology used to revitalize older, traditional business districts throughout the United States. It is a common-sense way to address the variety of issues and problems that face traditional business districts.

The underlying premise of the Main Street Approach is to encourage economic development within the context of historic preservation in ways appropriate to today’s marketplace. The Main Street Approach advocates a return to community self-reliance, local empowerment, and the rebuilding of traditional commercial districts based on their unique assets: distinctive architecture, a pedestrian-friendly environment, personal service, local ownership, and a sense of community.”

http://www.milledgevillemainstreet.com/about/