Conference on the Front Porch Returns to Plein Air in October

The Conference on the Front Porch, the only known gathering devoted solely to the significance of the front porch in American society, will return to the Plein Air Neighborhood in Taylor after a two-year COVID hiatus.

The dates for the 2022 gathering are October 28-30.

“We are very excited to bring the conference back,” said conference founder Campbell McCool. “Even more so with the incredible lineup of speakers and musicians we’ve got in store for ’22′.”

The Keynote speaker will be Robert Davis, the visionary founder and developer of Seaside, Florida. Seaside is credited with introducing new urbanism, a development philosophy that emphasizes human scale, walkability, and mixed-use planning.

Davis has been recognized as one of the most important real estate developers of the 20th century, as Seaside is studied worldwide by architects, planners, and developers.

New to the conference this year is a singer-songwriter component. Mississippi’s own Mac McAnally will perform as the conference’s headliner on Saturday night. McAnally is a country music legend, part of the Nashville singer-songwriter Hall of Fame, and has written hits for groups such as Alabama, Jimmy Buffett, Sawyer Brown, Rascal Flatts and more.  

The three-day gathering will also showcase “Mississippi Today” editor Marshall Ramsey, Southern Foodways Alliance co-founder John T. Edge, poet January O’Neil, podcaster Abe Partridge and others.

Joining McAnally on the music front will be Charlie Mars, Bedon Lancaster and other local acts.

Tickets to the three-day event are $449 and include all events, meals, speakers, picnics, bonfires, and story-telling sessions.

Sponsors for the 2022 Conference on the Front Porch are Krutz Family Vineyards, Argent Financial Trust, Old Dominick Distillery, and McCaffrey & Company International Management Consultants.

Tickets and information can be found at www.theconferenceonthefrontporch.com.