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Up in Stanhope, they’re already throwing down.

A little pre-party to pre-pare for the biggest day of the year.

“It’s Watermelon Day!” says Stanhope native, Rick Youngs, “and it’s typically one day.”

“What is it?” asks Shaunna Zanker, rhetorically. “The best day of the year.”

Saturday this small town that fights so hard to stay together, comes together.

“We have a watermelon-eating contest, we have fire spinning, cloggers, music, rides, food…and then a whole semi full of free watermelon.”

Sixty-five years ago, the Stanhope Lions Club wanted to throw a party for the town.

“They said ‘let’s do something unusual,’” said Young, “and Milford Hoag who owned Hoag Truck Line said ‘I’ve got trucks running to Texas!”

He filled one with watermelons and brought them to Stanhope, where melon season was still at least a month away. Watermelon Day began.

It’s still a hit.

“We see people from all over the place,” said Zanker. “All over.”

There’ll be a new guest at this year’s party–also dressed in red. The old train depot moved back to town last month.

“I think it’s bringing a lot of people who want to see it back home,” Zanker said. “They’re excited to see it, look through it, see what they’ve been working on.”

We got to take a peek inside.

It’s covered in dust but loaded with time-traveling treasures. They’ll be cleaned and mended as the town lovingly reclaims this piece of its past.

“And then we want to get a dock laid here like it was originally,” said Young, pointing to the area along the depot’s loading doors, “and then we’ve got railroad tracks to go along the way…”

God knows how many times he’ll have to repeat that story this weekend, but hey—the town’s had quite a year, and the big day is still to come.