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The town of Dayton is gearing up for its annual spring festival.
The 16th Annual Redbud Arts & Crafts Festival will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday along College Street in downtown Dayton.
The festival will feature over 100 vendors, including artists, crafters, and food trucks. It will also feature live music, an antique car show at Rocktown History, and free horse-drawn carriage rides, said Christine Wade, the event coordinator.
This year’s live performers will include The Mountain Heritage Cloggers at 10 a.m., Shane Click at 11:30 a.m. and Micala and The Back Rhodes at 2 p.m. Wade said the performances will take place at Dove Park, which is located at 360 College Street.
“This is the smaller of the two festivals, and it’s just on one street,” Wade said.
The larger festival, Dayton Days, is held in the fall.
“It kind of balances out the activity of having the Dayton Days in October, and it brings people into the town in the springtime as well, and that was our intention for starting it in the first place,” said Jane Braithwaite, who originally founded the festival with her husband, John, at the site of her Dayton business Braithwaite Studios, to help promote the work of local artists.
The festival was such a hit that it was taken over by the town of Dayton and moved to College Street.
Another Redbud Festival tradition is The Ducky Races. Three races will take place at Cook’s Creek Park, beginning at 1 p.m.
Those interested in participating in the Ducky Races can buy a duck ahead of time at participating Dayton businesses or purchase a duck the day of the race at the town information booth at Dove Park. Duckies cost $5 and can be purchased with cash only.
Wade said the festival features activities for both adults and children.
“It’s for all ages,” Wade said. “There’s so many activities for kids. There’s shopping for adults. There’s the beer and the wine garden and then music. We have Grampy’s Village Zoo petting zoo. There are barrel rides and mini pony rides. So there’s a lot of stuff to do for everyone, not just come and shop.”
Wade said that the wine garden and the petting zoo are new to this year’s festival.
“What I would say would be the biggest thing that draws people would be the free redbud sapling giveaway,” Wade said. “So we give away saplings to each person while supplies last.”
A complete list of locations where saplings will be given away is on the town of Dayton website or on the Dayton Redbud Spring Arts & Crafts Festival Facebook page.
One of the locations where people can get a free sapling is Braithwaite Studios, located at 415 Mason Street.
Jane Braithwaite said that one of the festival’s goals is to promote the work of local artists.
“We just wanted artists who had never had a chance to show their wares or be in the public eye to have an opportunity to set up a tent or a table,” she said.
The event also offers people the chance to see what the town of Dayton, including her own business, which sells coffee, homemade soup, blueberry pancakes, and etched glass, has to offer, Braithwaite said.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity to view homemade arts and crafts by local artists, and I would invite anybody who is interested in having a nice day out to come and walk through the streets of Dayton and see the charming architecture and visit some of the other shops, too,” Braithwaite said.
A limited amount of free parking for the festival is available at Wilbur Pence Middle School at 375 Bowman Rd in Dayton, or $5 Parking is available at Koogler Field, which is located at the corner of College Street and Eberly Road.
For more information on the festival, see its Facebook page, the town of Dayton’s website, or call the town at (540) 879-2241.
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