Editing Bartow, Florida (section)

===Annual festivals and other events===
There are several annual events in the  Bartow area which have a long tradition. Many of these are large events which draw people from other communities to the city such as the Cricket Club Halloween Parade and Carnival held each year since 1942 or the annual Fourth of July Celebration held at Mosaic Park.<ref name="Bartow Halloween Parade is Oct. 30">{{cite news
| url = http://www.theledger.com/article/20081001/COLUMNISTS/810010415
| title = Bartow Halloween Parade is Oct. 30
| access-date = 2010-09-14
| newspaper = The Ledger
}}</ref><ref name="Bartow Plans July 4 Bash">{{cite news
| url = http://www.theledger.com/article/20080627/COLUMNISTS/806270430
| title = Bartow Plans July 4 Bash
| access-date = 2010-09-14
| newspaper = The Ledger
}}</ref> The Bloomin' Arts Festival is an art show held in early March by the Bartow Art Guild.<ref name="Bartow Bloomin' Arts Festival Is This Weekend">{{cite news
| url = http://www.theledger.com/article/20110328/NEWS/110329439
| title = South Polk: Bloomin' Arts Show Winners Announced
| access-date = 2012-01-21
| newspaper = The Ledger
}}</ref> Every February brings the Annual L.B. Brown Festival at the L.B. Brown House on L.B. Brown Avenue (formally Second Avenue).<ref name="L.B. Brown events">{{cite web
| url = http://www.lbbrown.com/events.htm
| title = L.B. Brown events
| access-date = 2012-01-21
| publisher = Neighborhood Improvement Corporation of Bartow, Inc.
| url-status = dead
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111105030540/http://lbbrown.com/events.htm
| archive-date = November 5, 2011
}}</ref>
Bartow's discarded natural Christmas trees are piled around a telephone pole for the annual New Year's Eve bonfire, a unique tradition spanning more than seven decades which has sometimes been covered by national media.<ref name="Bartow's Traditional Tree Burning">{{cite news
| url = http://www.theledger.com/article/20141230/news/141239923
| title = Bartow's Traditional Tree Burning Tonight
| access-date= 2015-05-23
| newspaper = The Ledger
}}</ref>

The Polk County Arts Alliance based in Bartow is designated the official Art Agency by the county commission and is in charge of furthering the performing arts in the county.<ref name="Polk Arts Alliance Home Page">{{cite web
| url = http://www.polkartsalliance.org/
| title = Polk Arts Alliance Home Page
| access-date = 2010-09-14
| publisher = Polk Arts Alliance
| url-status = dead
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110727181937/http://www.polkartsalliance.org/
| archive-date = July 27, 2011
}}</ref> The Bartow Performing Arts Series sponsors five performances every year. The Imperial Symphony Orchestra is an ensemble of ninety volunteer musicians throughout the county who perform a dozen or so events every year including a concert "under the stars".<ref name="The Civic Center">{{cite news
| url = http://www.ledgerdata.com/guide_to_polk/561/imperial-symphony-orchestra/
| title = Imperial Symphony Orchestra
| access-date = 2010-09-14
| newspaper = The Ledger
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110713194559/http://www.ledgerdata.com/guide_to_polk/561/imperial-symphony-orchestra/
| archive-date = July 13, 2011
| url-status = dead
}}</ref> The city also has a volunteer band, the Bartow Adult Concert Band, which performs several shows a year.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Roslow |first=Jeff |date=August 29, 2018 |title=Adult Concert Band names civic center stage for founder |work=YourSun |url=https://www.yoursun.com/polk/newsarchives/adult-concert-band-names-civic-center-stage-for-founder/article_1c762c86-c36d-5fef-b5ec-e9013b235c69.html |access-date=October 18, 2022}}</ref> On the third Friday of every month, Main Street is blocked off for Friday Fest at 6 p.m. for a night of live music and entertainment, informally known as "Tow Jam" by natives.<ref name="Bartow's Friday Fest 'Tow Jam">{{cite news
| url = http://www.theledger.com/article/20060721/COLUMNISTS0112/607210311
| title = Bartow's Friday Fest 'Tow Jam
| access-date = 2011-11-06
| newspaper = The Ledger
}}</ref>
[[File:South Florida Military Academy 1895.JPG|thumb|right|alt=a two-story square building partially obscured by oak trees|The South Florida Military College Building]]