GRANVILLE — The town’s population, which is about 1,600, will swell by a factor of at least five when it opens its 42nd annual Harvest Fair.
The fair will feature hundreds of craft vendors, delicious and distinctive food, live entertainment and artist demonstrations spread throughout town.
“Granville is excited for the upcoming 42nd annual Granville Harvest Fair, which is definitely the biggest weekend of the year if you live in town or operate a business. It is also one of the biggest fundraisers for a lot of town organizations,” said Nicole Berndt, a member of the town Selectboard.
Berndt said the fair, which opens Friday, Oct. 11 and is spread throughout the town at six locations, takes advantage of the Columbus Day holiday to offer three days of fun, education, food, crafts and art beneath spectacular views of the surrounding hills as the fall foliage begins to explode in color.
“It is a great way to try delicious foods, local beer and wine, check out the amazing art, crafts and handiwork of local neighbors and to check out the natural beauty of Granville on a quintessential New England fall weekend,” she said.
The vendor locations include the Granville Federated Church, the Granville Village School, Cooley & Company on Route 189, the Noble & Cooley Drum Factory, the front lawn of the Granville Public Library and the Town Green.
And each year the Harvest Fair Committee vets the vendors to make sure each one is unique to avoid duplication, but there are so many it’s difficult to give a general description of the types of crafts and foods that will be offered to visitors, Berndt said.
“You’ll just have to find out for yourself,” she said of the variety.
The Granville Village School, operated by The Community Christian School, will have indoor and outdoor vendors, most notably Whip City Jerky, a bake sale, face painting, sand art, a raffle and hot food.
The Granville Public Library will have outdoor vendors, featuring Maple Corner Farm and Pat’s Greenhouse, and the Granville Library Club will be holding its famous book sale as well as hosting a raffle and selling historic china — all to benefit the club.
The Granville Federated Church has vendors indoors and out — including food vendors. They will be featuring homemade soups and Granville apple crisp.
Granville Town Green has craft and food vendors and is the central bus stop for those using the shuttle service provided during the fair.
At the Green, fair goers can bite into fried dough made by the Granville-Tolland Lions Club or baked potatoes and chili from the Granville Fire Department. And to wash it all down, Granville’s own Dagger’s Meadery will be offering mead – for those who don’t know, mead is fermented honey and is probably the world’s oldest alcoholic beverage.
The Green is also where you’ll find the public safety booth.
At the Nobel & Cooley Drum Shop, off the main path, but an easy walk or the bus will drop you right at the door, is the place to catch some live music with the Nice Shirt Band performing from noon-5 p.m., Saturday and more music on Sunday starting at noon. Drop in to listen or even dance.
The Drum Shop will also be the place for fresh and locally brewed beer from Skyline Beer Company, which will also offer its trademark specialty pretzels, and Southwick’s Crepes Tea House will be there to offer sweets, savory crepes and kebobs.
The Noble & Cooley Center for Historic Preservation Museum and Gift Shop will be open all three days of the fair with tours, demonstrations, and food vendors.
Cooley & Company will be open for business and this year there are two new indoor venues “loaded with new and returning vendors,” said Cooley Buy, Cooley’s proprietor.
She also said there will be six food trucks there, including Cooley’s Cool Eats truck featuring flatbread pizza, soups and meatball sandwiches, Westfield’s North Elm Butcher Block, and Sweet Memories Donuts.
And local artisans will be there with live demonstrations, including chain-sawing art, wood carving and loads of potters and pottery.
Buy added that The Original Pothead will be there with its original pottery and Billie’s, which offers vintage, bohemian, and contemporary clothing.
She’s also planning on having live music.
Visitors can also pick fresh apples at the Mountain Orchard.
Nearly every nonprofit organization in town will have food for sale and all the proceeds generated will be plowed back into the individual organizations for their charitable efforts.
The fair takes place every year over Columbus Day weekend. It started as a quilt show in 1981 but has evolved into a town-wide event that includes tours of 160-year-old Noble & Cooley drum factory.
The fair hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Monday, Oct. 11 and 13, and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 12.
Contact information for all site coordinators can be found at townofgranville.net/visit-granville/pages/harvest-fair.
