The National Dutch Oven Gathering Lands at Marianna's Old Fairgrounds This Weekend

Last year the National Dutch Oven Gathering was held in Shelby, North Carolina. The year before, it was in Mitchell, Indiana. Starting today, it fills the Jackson County Agricultural Center on U.S. 90, about 2 miles west of Marianna.

The gathering doesn't have a permanent home. It moves from state to state with the cooks who come back to it every year, and it usually lands where someone is willing to host. For 2026 that host is Forrest Dilmore. On the event website he writes that the Panhandle is "the place that I've called home for the past 61 years," and he points visiting cooks to the "Ag Center," which he notes "the local folks call" the old fairgrounds.

So for three days, a national community of cast-iron cooks will be camped on ground most of Jackson County knows from the fair.

Where the Gathering Has Been

The gathering's travels are written up on the website of Southeast Camper, the group that hosted the 2025 edition in Shelby and is handling camping reservations this year.

A Southeast Camper writer's first gathering was the one at DeGray Lake, which says something about how long some of these cooks have followed the event from state to state. The 2026 judging uses "a revised version" of the International Dutch Oven Society rules.

The Old Fairgrounds as a Campground

The Ag Center works for an event like this because people can camp on site. On his welcome page, Dilmore lists 30-amp service and a water hookup at each site, plus a dump station on the grounds.

The gathering's schedule also left room before the official start. It set aside Tuesday, Nov. 3, and Wednesday, Nov. 4, to "set up and hang out with friends," with a potluck possible depending on how many people were around. Campers at the fairgrounds before Thursday are part of that early setup.

Registration was $20 per person, or $30 for a family of up to five plus $3 for each extra family member. The form listed Oct. 3 as the last day to register. Visit Jackson County lists the event from 9 a.m. to midnight each day, but the event's own schedule doesn't open registration until noon on Thursday.

Three Days, Built Around Supper

The posted schedule reads more like a family reunion than a festival program. Every evening ends the same way.

• Thursday, Nov. 5: Registration and check-in run from noon to 3 p.m. Cooks pick up gift bags and wristbands, drop off state baskets, and sign up for classes and the adult cook-off. A potluck dinner starts at 5 p.m. in the pavilion.
• Friday, Nov. 6: From 9:30 to 11 a.m., Leslie Tennessen teaches Dutch Oven 101 while Dennis Clute shows how to build a Clute Cooker. Sami Dahdal teaches Lebanese cooking from 1 to 3 p.m. Potluck dinner is at 5 p.m.
• Saturday, Nov. 7: Potluck breakfast is at 9:30 a.m. Sue Alexander teaches a Lodge fluted-pan Bundt cake class at 10 a.m., and Dahdal's Lebanese cooking session runs again from 1 to 3 p.m. The silent auction runs all day, state baskets can be picked up after 3 p.m., and the last potluck dinner is at 5 p.m.

Each potluck listing says "All are welcome. Join in on the fellowship." The schedule also asks everyone to help clean up after meals and to help set up tables and chairs on Thursday. The organizers expect the people who eat to also pitch in.

One evening is set aside for something else. Dilmore promises a supper "similar to what might of been had on an 1880's cattle drive, prepared on an authentic chuckwagon." The website doesn't say which night.

The 3-Pot Cook-Off Has Two Schedules

The three-pot cook-off is the main competition, and the official documents disagree about when it happens.

The online schedule puts it on Friday, Nov. 6: a cooks' meeting at 9 a.m., setup at 9:30, cooking from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and winners announced at 6 p.m. The cook-off information packet has competitors getting pit assignments Friday at 7 p.m. and cooking on Saturday. The packet's Saturday timeline:

1. 9:30 a.m. cooks' meeting
2. 9:45 a.m. field judges inspect the Dutch ovens
3. 10 a.m. fires lit and cooking starts
4. 1 p.m. desserts due at the judges' table
5. 1:30 p.m. breads due
6. 2 p.m. entrees due

The schedule itself says it "is not etched in stone and could fluctuate as needed." If you plan to watch the cooking, email [email protected] before you go to find out which day it is.

Under the packet rules, prizes go to first, second, and third place overall, and garnishes must be simple and edible. If a cook uses flowers, they have to be edible and pesticide-free, and field judges can ask for proof of where they were bought. Rule 11 tells competitors, "Interaction with the public is encouraged. Please be courteous in sharing cooking information." The cooking area itself is limited to team members, so you can ask questions from the edge of a pit, but you can't step into it.

If You Haven't Registered

The organizers' pages don't say whether unregistered visitors can walk in, watch, or eat, or what that would cost. The potluck invitation reads "All are welcome," and the cook-off rules talk about cooks sharing information with the public. The posted fees only cover registration. The event email, [email protected], is the place to ask before you drive out. It's also the address the organizers list for anyone who wants to add to the schedule.

The Next Crowd Arrives Nov. 13

Once the last state basket is picked up Saturday afternoon, the fairgrounds have less than a week before another traveling crowd shows up. Medieval Fae Fest runs Nov. 13 through 15 at the same Jackson County Agricultural Center, 3631 Highway 90.

Fae Fest is easier to plan for because it publishes a full set of prices. Here's what its official site and ticket page list:

Children under 12 get in free with a paying adult. The festival's site lists hours of 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. The county tourism listing shows 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., so check the festival's own page before planning a late visit. Questions go to [email protected].

Visit Jackson County's events calendar lists both gatherings at the Ag Center this November. One draws cast-iron cooks who travel from state to state, and the other draws a costumed festival crowd. Both come to the same fairgrounds a few miles west of downtown.

At Indian Springs Real Estate, we've been part of Jackson County since 1988, and we're glad to see the old fairgrounds hosting a national gathering this week. If you meet visiting cooks at a potluck who ask what life is like around Marianna, send them our way. We're happy to talk about this part of Northwest Florida with anyone curious about it.