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Great Gingerbread Train Competition Entry Period (Chesapeake)
November 17, 2025 - December 13, 2025
Entry period: November 14 – December 13, 2025.
Great Gingerbread Train Competition participants are encouraged to learn about and craft trains that were vital to the region’s timbering and lumber industry in the Great Dismal Swamp from the 1830s until the mid-1900s, using gingerbread cookie dough, icing, and other edible decorations.
Entries should represent a train, engine, caboose, or other railroad car, either alone or in combination with other rail cars. Entries do not need to be exact replicas of trains that operated in the swamp during the 1800s through the mid-1900s; however, incorporating an aspect of the Great Dismal Swamp into your entry is required. See additional rules and requirements below.
Anyone can enter this competition. There are categories for 12 years old and under, 13-17 years old, and 18 years old and over and team entry.
This competition allows the community to learn more about the lesser-known history of the narrow-gauge trains, which contributed to the thriving lumber industry centered in the Great Dismal Swamp, which lasted for almost 200 years in the Tidewater region. This industry created numerous economic opportunities for many communities in the area of what is now Chesapeake.