Giant watermelons grown in Hope Arkansas


1979 World Record Watermelon Grown by Ivan & Lloyd Bright	1985 World Record Watermelon Grown by Jason L. Bright	2005 World Record Watermelon Grown by Lloyd Bright

We sell seeds to gardeners who have an interest in growing large watermelons and cantaloupes. These seeds are from melons we have grown from proven genetic seed lines collected over the past thirty-four years. Gardeners can use the "click here" button in this section to view the listing of all available seeds. The seed order form can be printed for mailing and the form also lists an e-mail address for electronic ordering through PayPal.

We also grow giant watermelons to sell on the local big melon market. This market for big watermelons began locally in the early 1900’s when the area was a major shipping site for boxcar loads of regular watermelons from spurs at Emmet, Prescott, and Hope, Arkansas. Shippers located customers for the one hundred plus pound watermelons during the off-season and then shipped the big melons in individual crates by rail during the melon season. The large watermelons helped shippers in promoting their regular size shipping melons.

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Where to Buy Giant Watermelons in Hope, Arkansas
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Hope Watermelon Festival	Giant Watermelons P.O. Box 141 Hope AR 71802 Our business, Giant Watermelons, delivers watermelons within a limited area.
Dos Loco Gringos, I-30 next to Holiday Inn Express	Western Sizzlin @ I-30 & Hwy 278

One Hundred Years of Large Watermelons
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Early 1900's - Shipping Watermelons by Rail	1906 - Peddling Watermelons
1917-1925 - Gibson Contest Years	1925 - John S. Gibson, Originator of Hope's First Watermelon Growing Contest
1926 - Entry in Hope's First Watermelon Festival Parade	1927 - Entry in the 1927 Parade
1927 - Runner Up to Winning Watermelon	1929 - Hoyt and Cecil Laseter
1930 - A.B. Turner & "Jumbo"	1935 - World Record Watermelon for 44 Years
World War II - Italy	1973 - First Watermelon to Exceed 100 Pounds for the Bright Family
1977 - Seed Watermelon for Two World Record Watermelons	1979 - $10,000 World Record Grown by Ivan and Lloyd Bright
1983 - SASC Conference, Conway, SC	1985 - 260-pound World Record Watermelon
July 11, 2003 - Blue Rind Watermelon	September, 2003 - 2003 Hope Big Watermelon Contest Winner
August, 2004 - 204-pound Carolina Cross	September, 2005 - 243-pound seed watermelon
September, 2005 - 248-pound seed watermelon	September, 2005 - 262.6-pound watermelon displayed at Western Sizzlin
September, 2005 - World record watermelon weighing 268.8 pounds	July 4, 2006 - Checking on watermelons Ivan Bright, 4-21-1914 to 8-12-2006
August 11, 2006 - Best of dry season, 207.5 and 206.5 pound melons	September 2007 215-1/2 pound Carolina Cross #268
September 2007 216 pound Carolina Cross #268	September 2007 Hybrid Black Diamond #156

Summer Scenes
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Blue Rind Watermelons	Colossal Cantaloupes and Susan	Perry, local customer, assists loading


Taking from the field melons weighing 191 and 196 pounds	Loading a 196-pound Carolina Cross sold to an East Texas watermelon grower	Pat and Carolina Cross watermelons weighing 201 and 205.5 pounds


Cousin Rose and Carolina Cross melon displayed at Western Sizzlin	2005 Hope Watermelon Festival display


2007 Hope Watermelon Festival Auction Susan and Lloyd Bright visit with James Griffin from Florida	2007 Hope Watermelon Festival Jerry Vaughn of Water Valley, MS and Ron Bowers of Smithville, TN discuss growing watermelons