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Kansas Prairie Pickers Association


The Kansas Prairie Pickers Association is a music organization in northeast Kansas interested in the preservation of Bluegrass and Old Time acoustic music. We get together on the fourth Sunday of October through April at the Community Center in Auburn, Kansas, with open jam sessions and stage performances by area bands and other groups. On the second weekend in June we have our annual festival at Prairie Lake, close to Holton, Kansas. Our members are in several area bluegrass bands and are available for hire. Hope you browse through our web site and get a feel for who we are. Better yet, come on out and jam with us a while!

Table of Contents

About Us: Information about our organization; history, goals, and ongoing activities. To join, please print off our Membership Form, fill it in and mail it back. Or, for more information contact us via email at the address below.
Calendar: Bluegrass events in the Kansas and surrounding area.
Links & Contacts: Acoustic music and community related links.
Pictures: Link to Smugmug for Club pictures (www.kppamusic.smugmug.com).
Bluegrass/Acoustic Bands: Bands of northeast Kansas and beyond.
Library: Articles and links to other articles.
Scholarship: Dave Hackett Memorial Scholarship Details.
Membership: Membership Form

Holton, Kansas May 1996 Prairie Lake 
Pickin Party Festival 'Bluegrass Moon'

Our monthly Auburn Jam is over for the season until October. It's FESTIVAL TIME! Here are the details:


2026

June 11-13

32nd Annual Prairie Lake Pickin' Party

In June we put on the Prairie Lake Pickin' Party, our own festival featuring local and regional bands as well as an open mic on Saturday afternoon, and plenty of pickin' around the festival grounds. The city has a small stage in some shade trees of this nice lake. Simple camping (dry), partial shade, with a pit toilet and electricity available at most sites. Remember to bring your lawn chairs to watch the show!

Band Schedule:

Thursday

5pm Six Mile Creek

6pm Bootlegged Bluegrass

7pm Rood Awakening

8pm Mud Creek Turnaround

9pm Poor Man's Opera

Friday

5pm Pheasant Pluckers

6pm Bluebelles of the Trail

7:05 pm Scholarship Winner

7:10 pm Boiler Room Boys

8:10 pm Jed Zeppelin

9:10 pm Tresgrassers

Saturday

5pm Live Bait

6:05 pm T-Shirt Design Winner

6:10 pm MayBelles

7:10 pm Kansas Mash

8:10 pm Pastense

9:05 pm Drawing for Instrument

9:15 pm New Lands

KPPA Membership Meeting: Saturday morning, 10 a.m. at the membership table. General business of the Club will be conducted and it's open to all KPPA members. Come be a part of the process!

Open Mic: We will have an open mic starting at 1:00 for groups or individuals that want to perform.

Raffle: Tom King of Grandpa Barry's Guitars (Ottawa), have donated a guitar and case for raffle.

Retail Tables: The club charges $25 for groups or individuals to sell their wares. Check newsletter for details, or contact KPPA.

Directions: Prairie Lake is one mile north and 3.5 miles east of Holton, Kansas.

Camping: Dry camping is available ($). The lake has permanent pit toilets and no water. The City of Holton operates the campground. Rules are as follows:

Camping Rules: Camping permits are based on an overnight stay. Camping units may stay for a maximum of 14 days. Camp sites may not be reserved. Unoccupied camping units are not to be left overnight.

Camping Permits: Sites with electricity $10, without electricity $8.

Fishing Permits: State fishing license required

Food: The Circleville Christian Church Youth Group will operate their food booth again on Thursday night, Friday night and Saturday.

Keep checking back for more info on the local acoustic scene.

Happy pickin'


Contact: John Payne
E-mail:
fidlnjohn@yahoo.com
Last Modified: May 31, 2026.