What To Do: Chadds Ford Days brings back the past

By Denny Dyroff, Staff Writer, The Times

Every year, there are two constants with the weekend after Labor Day — the weather will be better than it was on Labor Day Weekend and the Chadds Ford Historical Society will be hosting its annual event known as Chadds Ford Days (John Chads House, Route 100, Chadds Ford, 610-388-7376, www.chaddsfordhistory.org).

This year, the well-attended festival, which will be held on September 9 and10 in the meadow behind the CFHS building on Route 100 in Chadds Ford, will feature an art show and a craft show with more than 40 traditional artisans selling their wares. There will also be a variety of colonial craft demonstrations presented each day.

Festival attendees will be able to interact with Colonial re-enactors and watch cannon firings, get a libation at a colonial tavern, watch a puppet show and take tours of the John Chads House and the Barns-Brinton House — both of which date back to the early 1700s.

The outdoor event, which is celebrating its 52nd anniversary this year, also features food booths presented by local restaurants, Colonial demonstrators, children’s activities, an antique car show and live musical entertainment.

There will be also be a full slate of live music both days featuring

Robert Mouland, Stephanie Brown & Ed McLaughlin, Seven Rings, Steve Liberace Band, Joe Hillman Band, Marlboro Road, and The Sermon.

The event’s hours are 10 a.m.-7 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets are $10 for adults with free admission for kids and dogs — and free parking.

One of the area’s most pleasant late-summer events is the annual Barclay Friends’ Secret Gardens of West Chester and Plant Sale (locations in downtown West Chester, 610-696-5211, www.bf.kendal.org). It was formerly known as the Barclay Friends’ Festival of Gardens.

This event is a garden tour that features a variety of scenic gardens created by residents of West Chester Borough. Held in different sections of the Borough of West Chester each year, the Festival of Gardens is annual event that benefits the Barclay Friends’ Horticultural Therapy program.

This year, the 13th Annual Festival of Gardens will be held on September 9 from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. The tour will visit a variety of private gardens in the borough of West Chester. During the tour, local artists can be found working in many of the gardens.

Garden Tour participants will also have the opportunity to view Barclay Friends’ gardens and attend a plant sale at Barclay Friends. The plant sale of uncommon plants will be held at Barclay Friends from noon-4 p.m. Refreshments will be served by Barclay Friends family members.

Tickets are not required for the plant sale and refreshments. Tour tickets are $20 in advance and $25 on the day of the event.

Guests are invited to join in the fun at the 11th annual Caln Community Day (253 Municipal Drive, Thorndale, http://www.calntownship.org/community-day.html), which is being presented by Hatt’s True Value Hardware and the Downingtown Library on September 9 from 3-8:30 p.m.

The popular annual event will feature vendors, food, a beer garden and a wide array of family activities including a photo booth, a mini golf course, moon bounces and knockerballs.

There will also be live music by Project-X, a pie-eating contest, a car smash (benefiting the Jacinda Miller Memorial Fund), and a dunk tank (benefiting the Thorndale Fire Company).

Community Day will also feature a golf ball drop. Up to 1,000 balls will be dropped from a ladder truck with closest to the pin winning $1,000 and second closest winning $500. This year, you need not be present to win. Tickets are available for purchase at the Municipal Building or Ingleside Golf Course.

The grand finale will be a spectacular fireworks show sponsored by Brandywine Hospital.

From September 8-10, the 21st Annual Radnor Hunt Concours d’Elegance will be held on the grounds of Radnor Hunt (826 Providence Road, Malvern, www.radnorconcours.org).

This year’s event will feature Auburn/Cord/Duesenberg, Race Cars of Roger Penske, Abarth and Vintage Tractors. The featured motorcycles classes are Century Cycles (1987-1917), Victorian Bicycles and High Wheelers, Inter-War Elegance (1918-1939) and Post-War European Sports Bikes.

The event also includes horse drawn coaches and carriages which illustrate the evolution of wheeled transportation.

The Radnor Hunt Concours d’Elegance features three days of activities beginning with the Friday evening barbecue, followed by the always popular road rally through the scenic countryside of Chester County on Saturday morning, culminating in a catered lunch.

The Saturday evening “Black Tie Gala, Silent Auction and Art Show Preview” is the prelude to the main event, the Concours d’Elegance on Sunday.

Each year, the concours event, an invitation-only show, has a featured marque, a vehicle type or coachbuilder and a motorcycle make.

The event also includes Motorsport Park, providing local marque car clubs the opportunity to gather in an exclusive parking area close to the show field entrance on Sunday, as well as a Cars & Coffee gathering on Saturday concurrent with the road rally.

The Marketplace area features a variety of both automotive and non-automotive merchants, and offering specialized shopping for concours attendees.

Adult admission is $50 at the gate, and admission for youth (ages 12-18) is $25. Admission for children (under 12) is free with paid adult admission ticket.

Proceeds from the event will benefit Thorncroft Equestrian Center in Malvern, Pennsylvania. The Thorncroft Equestrian Center is committed to a mainstreaming approach for teaching horseback riding and to promoting the development of new and independent therapeutic riding programs, particularly for those with special needs.

Now through September 10, the Broomall Fire Company is hosting its 2017 Carnival (Malin Road and West Chester Pike, Broomall, 610-353-5225, http://www.broomallfirecompany.com/pages/carnival.html) — an old-time country fair put together by Majestic Midways.

The event features free admission but there is a cost for the rides. Individual tickets $1.50 each and are sold in quantities of two tickets. Riders can purchase a block of 24 tickets for $25 or a block of 54 tickets for $50.

The carnival is scheduled to get underway on September 8 at 6 p.m. and run until 11 p.m. Hours for Saturday are 3-11 p.m. and then the event will be open from 1-6 p.m. on Sunday.

Majestic Midways, which is based in York, has been providing amusement rides and games for carnivals for 105 years. Some of the company’s more popular rides are Ring of Fire, Century Wheel, Kite Flyer, Raiders, Monkey Mayhem, Super Shot and Himalaya.

The Eighth Annual Phoenixville Blues Festival will be held on September 9 at Phoenixville’s Bandshell (Reeves Park, Main Street and Second Avenue, Phoenixville, http://pvilleblues.org).

The festival will run from noon-10 p.m.

The schedule for the 2017 festival is: 11:45 a.m.-noon, Kids; 12:15 – 1:15 Hotlanta; 1:30 – 2:30 Tommy Froelich Trio; 2:30 – 3:30 Deb Callahan; 3:30 – 4:45 The Paul Michael Band; 4:45 – 5:15 Vocal Fusion/Anthem; 5:15 – 6:15 Greg Sover Band; 6:15 – 7:30 Balkun Bothers; 7:30 – 8:45 Vanessa Collier; 8:45 – 10:00 Billy the Kid.

The event, which will be held rain or shine, is free and open to the public.

The Binky Lee Preserve (1445 Pikeland Road, Chester Springs, https://natlands.org/event/beatsandbrews2017) will host Beats and Brews on September 9 from 6-9:30 p.m.

The event will be a late-summer evening filled with live music and craft beer in support for the Campaign for Bryn Coed Farms and Binky Lee Preserve.

Entertainment will be provided by MiZ & Friends featuring Mike Mizwinski, who will jam through the evening in celebration of 50 years of the Grateful Dead.

Thanks to support from Victory Brewing Company, all ticket-holders receive two free beers. Additional beer will be available for purchase, along with light dinner fare from Victory’s iconic Brew Pub on Wheels (cash-only).

Proceeds from Beats and Brews are an important part of community fundraising to preserve nearby Bryn Coed Farms, Natural Lands’ newest property, as well as restoration projects and improved amenities at Binky Lee.

September 9 is the opening day for “Pumpkinland” (Linvilla Orchards, 137 West Knowlton Road, Media, 610-876-7116, www.linvilla.com). “Pumpkinland,” which runs through November 5, features fairy tale characters from nursery rhymes along with a huge scarecrow and a really tall storybook.

Other activities include train rides, a straw bale maze, hayrides, pick-your-own apples and pony rides. Another attraction, which runs from September 22-October 30, is “Hayride to the Witch’s House.” Admission is free and hayrides are $9 per person. There will also be “Harvest Hayrides” and “Autumn Moon Hayrides” starting later in September.

The annual Brandywine Festival of the Arts (North Park Drive, Wilmington, Delaware, 302-363-5955, www.brandywinearts.com) has been one of the most popular late-summer events in northern Delaware for a long, long time.

The 57th annual two-day staging of the arts-and-crafts festival is slated for September 9 and 10 at its usual location in Brandywine Park’s Josephine Gardens along the banks of the Brandywine River in Wilmington. Tickets are $5 for adults with children (under 12) admitted free.

As always, the festival is a juried event that brings more than 250 artists and crafters from more than 15 states to Josephine Gardens to exhibit and sell their work. The list of featured categories includes mixed-media, clothing, bears, stoneware, watercolors, lamps, ironwork, herbs, bonsai, wood type, glass, acrylic, weaving, stenciling, pastels, scarves, etchings, photography, sculpture, jewelry, raku, and leather.

There will also be vendors offering a wide variety of food items at the festival, which is scheduled to run from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Sunday.

Live entertainment will be featured both days. Musicians performing at the festival are Hanna Paige, Mike McDevitt, Jessica Graae, Jodi Elizabeth, Sherman Hesse, Meredith Rounsley, Lullanas, Sitarbob, and Levi Dylan & The Former Ruins.

Historic Odessa Brewfest (202 Main Street, Odessa, Delaware, 302-378-4119, http://www.odessabrewfest.com).

The Fourth Annual Historic Odessa Brewfest, which is being presented by the Historic Odessa Foundation and Cantwell’s Tavern, is slated for September 9 from noon-6 p.m. (VIP, noon-2 p.m.; General Admission, 2-6 p.m.)

America’s thirst for ale and beer began with the earliest colonists who made it a priority to first build a brewhouse on the site of their new settlements. As drinking water was avoided like the plague, beer was a major dietary staple in the colonies, consumed by everyone from cradle to grave.

Joining the festivities again this year will be colonial re-enactors, Rich and Linda Wagner. In full period dress, the Wagners will make beer on site using historically accurate methods and materials — copper kettles, wooden barrels, hops and grains.

There will be an array of tasty locally-produced food served at Cantwell’s, which is a farm-to-table gastropub. Approximately 60 local and national breweries are participating.

Live musical entertainment will be presented on two stages. Performing on the Main Stage will be country singer/songwriter Adam Yarger and local reggae act Spokey Speaky. The Garden Stage will feature acoustic jazz and blues artist Bruce Anthony and solo performer Tony Mowen.

All attendees have access to food and merchandise vendors, live bands, sponsor tables, and more during the entire event. Doors open at noon for the VIP Tasting and the regular fest is slated to start at 2 p.m. All taps will close at 6 p.m. General admission tickets are $50 ($15 for designated driver).

The Summer “WineDown” Fest, which is scheduled for September 9 at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center (100 Station Road, Oaks, 609-888-3618,

www.phillyexpocenter.com), will showcase the finest wines from Pennsylvania wineries, with hundreds of delicious samples for visitors’ enjoyment.

This year’s participating wineries and distilleries are 4Play Moonshine, Bee Kind Winery, Big Spring Spirits, Hungry Run Wine & Spirits, Jan Zell Wines, Juniata Valley Winery, Kilimanjaro Distillery, Olivero’s Vineyard, and Stateside Urbancraft Vodka.

The festival will also have tasty food, extravagant chocolates, shopping areas and live entertainment. There will be Bottle Check so attendees can buy bottles of wine to take home and vendors will have it ready for pickup at the door when the buyers leave.

There will be three separate sessions — noon-3 p.m., 1:30-4:30 p.m. and 3-6 p.m. Tickets are $20 at the door.

If you’re looking for a fun day of interesting and educational activities, head to Penn’s Landing in Philadelphia on September 9 to participate in the 2017 Pennsylvania Coast Day (Penn’s Landing, Delaware Avenue, Philadelphia, 800-445-4935, www.delawareestuary.org).

The family-oriented event is slated to run from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. at the site along the Delaware River. The free event provides visitors with a variety of ways to experience Philadelphia’s main water tributary.

A limited number of visitors will enjoy free cruises on the yachts Patriot and Liberty. Other excursions include free pedal boating and rowboating at Penn’s Landing Marina. Families can also enjoy free crafts, face painting, prizes, model boat races, and hands-on exhibits.

There will also be a number of land-based activities including more than 20 interactive displays and children’s activities near the RiverLink Ferry terminal.

Pennsylvania Coast Day is a rain-or-shine event.

Greenfest Philly (Headhouse Square, Second and South streets, Philadelphia, http://cleanair.org/greenfest), which will be held on September 10 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m., is the largest environmental festival in the Philadelphia area.

With more than 150 exhibitors and vendors, Greenfest is the place to learn about living sustainably while having fun.

Since 2006, this popular event in early September provides a unique opportunity for 10,000-20,000 attendees to learn how to live life a little greener and healthier. The festival’s multitude of vendors, local businesses, supporters and sponsors help transform Headhouse Square into a festive, fun and educational outdoor marketplace.

This event has something for everyone including shopping for local green wares, great food, live music, live demonstrations, and kid-friendly activities. In 2015, Greenfest Philly was voted “Best Family Event” by Everything Philly.

The festival is free to attend and all are welcome.

South Philly will be hopping on June 10 when the Yo’ South Philly Phestival takes place at St. Richard’s Schoolyard (18th and Pollock streets, Phialdelphia, https://www.facebook.com/events/273905819474725/).

The festival, which features free admission and fre parking, will feature tasty South Philly food, family fun activities, live music and games.

The entertainment line-up has Charlie Gracie as the headliner and also includes The Business, Tony Mecca & the Heavy Mental Gypsies, Night Fever, Bister, Sugar Rush Rocks, The Cultour, Benny Marsella, Gabby Delisi, and Felicia Punzo.

DJ Johnny Looch will be broadcasting live from 10 a.m.-midnight on loochradio.com.

This year marks the fourth annual staging of the popular event.

For those of you with a sense of adventure rather than a sense of modesty, September 9 is the date of the Ninth Annual Philadelphia Naked Bike Ride (https://philadelphianakedbikeride.wordpress.com/).

Starting at 5 p.m., riders in the buff will take the streets again to promote a clean earth, conscious fuel consumption, cycling advocacy, and body positivity.

Directions and more details can be found by following Philly Naked Bike Ride’s official social media sites on Twitter, Instagram, and Google+.

On September 9 and 10, the Philadelphia Honey Festival (https://phillyhoneyfest.com/) will feature two days of free, bee-related activities at three locations in Philadelphia — September 9 at Bartram’s Gardens (5400 Lindbergh Boulevard, Philadelphia) and September 10 at Wyck Historic House/Garden/Farm (6026 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia).

The mission of the Philadelphia Honey Festival is to raise awareness about the importance of honey bees to our environment, our food supply and our economy, and to promote urban beekeeping and gardening.

The Philadelphia Honey Festival began in 2010 to accompany the placement of an historic marker honoring Philadelphia-born Lorenzo L. Langstroth.  Well-known to beekeepers, Langstroth invented the first movable frame hive design based on the principle of “bee space.”

You can see the marker at 106 South Front Street in Philadelphia, his birthplace.

Visitors to the festival will be able to learn about the importance of bees in our ecosystem through honey extraction demonstrations, hive talks and other programming designed to explore at the hard-working insect that supports our food supply.

When summer winds down, it means that the area’s many ethnic festivals are looming on the horizon. This weekend, the list of options includes Mexican, Greek, Latin American and Polish.

The Mexican Independence Day Festival (www.mexicanculturalcenter.org) will have its annual celebration of great food, music, crafts and more on September 10.

The free event will run from 2-8 p.m. at Great Plaza at Penn’s Landing, which is located at 101 South Columbus Boulevard in Philadelphia

With more than 15,000 attendees, this festival is the largest event celebrating the Independence of Mexico in the Delaware Valley and it is recognized by the Delaware River Waterfront Corporation as the largest one-day cultural festival held at Penn’s Landing.

The day features events such as “El Grito,” a Mexican Independence Day tradition recalling the moment when Father Hidalgo rang the church bells marking the start of the Mexican War of Independence.
This popular festival celebrates not only Mexican Independence, but also Mexican culture and heritage, which will be highlighted through traditional Mexican artisan crafts, folkloric and mariachi performances, activities for children, and popular music performances.
During the event, attendees can also enjoy traditional Mexican food provided by local vendors.

The Fall Grecian Festival 2017 (St. Sophia’s Greek Orthodox Church, 900 South Trooper Road, Jeffersonville, 610-650-8960, www.saintsophiachurch.org) runs now through September 10 with a wide array of tasty Greek treats such as souvlaki, shish-ka-bob, moussaka, pastitsio and gyros and baklava.

Other activities include midway rides, vendors with crafts and Greek items and live Greek music. The free festival is open from 11 a.m.-9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and from noon-7 p.m. on Sunday.

The Latin American Cultural Center of Lancaster presents its Fourth Annual Latin American Festival September 9 at Lancaster’s Binn’s Park (North Queen Street, Lancaster, www.lancasterlacc.org).

The event, which will run from 2-9 p.m., is an original Latin American festival featuring an entire day of music, dancing, culture and food. There will also be live entertainment from several Latin American countries.

The festival is suitable for people of all ages and attendance is expected to again reach or surpass 10,000 people. The festival begins in Binn’s Park at noon with food and merchandise vendors set up along North Queen Street.

In addition to the live music from local and international talents, there will be face painting, piñatas and balloon twisting for the children.

The Latin American Cultural Center of Lancaster (LACC) is an established, non-profit organization that promotes the rich and diverse Latin American culture in Lancaster County. Admission to the festival is free.

The 52nd Annual Polish Festival the National Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa (654 Ferry Road, Doylestown, 215-345-0600, www.czestochowa.us) is being held on September 9 and 10.

Visitors to the festival will be able to feast on such Polish delicacies as kielbasa, pierogis, placki, holubki and chruschicki. The festival will feature rides, games and a full slate of Polish music and polka bands.

The roster of live entertainers includes Jimmy Sturr, PKM Polish Folk Dancers, Little Circus, The Boys, DJ Grzegorz, Polish American String Band, and Marisk Szczepek.

There is another reason to make Doylestown a destination this weekend.

On September 9 and 10, the downtown area of Doylestown will be the site of the 26th Annual Doylestown Arts Festival (www.doylestownartsfestival.com, 215-340-9988).

It will be a weekend of original arts and crafts, live music and diverse food. The two-day festival features more than 160 artists showcasing their creative works. Selections include paintings, photography, jewelry, wood and metal work, furniture, pottery and more.

There will be five stages of live music and various activities featured throughout town. A variety of dining options are available at the festival’s food court and at the restaurants that line the streets.

The annual festival features free admission.

The Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire (Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire Shire, Mount Hope Estate and Winery grounds, Route 72, Cornwall, 717-665-7021, www.parenfaire.com) is hosting its “Wizarding Weekend” on September 9 and 10.

From 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. each day, the huge faire will be dedicated to wizard fans – youngsters and adults.

Whether you have the gift of magic or enjoy life as one who is unaware of the sorcery surrounding us, this weekend is sure to enchant all visitors to the Shire.
Nipperkins are invited to the Avalon Hill Stage for a chance to work their magic by decorating a wand. For those 18 and older, there will be the Horcrux Scavenger Hunt. Participants will try to gather all five horcruxes and deliver them to a Ministry representative.

There will be “Quidditch Demonstrations” conducted by Franklin and Marshal College’s Quidditch Club. Quidditch practices the fine art of running with a broomstick, throwing a volleyball through hoops and peggin’ people with dodgeballs.
The event also includes “Royal Dog Days.” His Majesty has issued an invitation to the lover of dogs to join him and the Royal Hounds upon the Fairegrounds on this special weekend.

Admission is $31.95 for adults and $11.95 for kids ages 5-11.

If you’re looking for something very different to do on this late-summer weekend, consider attending the annual Whoopie Pie Festival at Hershey Farm Restaurant & Inn (240 Hartman Bridge Road, Route 896, Strasburg, 717-687-8635, http://whoopiepiefestival.com).

The Whoopie Pie Festival, which is billed as “The Most Delicious Day in Lancaster County,” features more than 100 different Whoopie Pie flavors. It will be held this year on September 9 from 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

According to food historians, Amish women would bake these tasty desserts and put them in farmers’ lunch pails. When farmers would find the treats in their lunch, they would shout “Whoopie!” It is likely that the original Whoopie Pies were made from cake batter leftovers.

Scheduled events at the 2017 festival are Whoopie Pie Treasure Hunt, Whoopie Pie Race, Whoopie Pie Launch, Whoopie Pie Checkers, Whoopie Yell Off, and Amateur Whoopie Pie Eating Contest.

Visitors will also be able to watch when the festival’s Whoopie Pie makers attempt to produce the “Largest Whoopie Pie Ever Made.” Other events throughout the day include
Whoopie Pie making for kids, face painting and bounce house fun.

The event features free admission. Rain date is September 10.

The weekend after Labor Day always features the Hay Creek Fall Festival at Historic Johanna Furnace (Route 10, Morgantown, 610-286-0388, www.haycreek.org).

The well-attended Berks County festival, which is an authentic traditional arts and crafts show that is celebrating its 41st anniversary, is also an event that gives visitors a chance to have a look back at the area’s historical development.

This year, the festival, which runs now through September 10 from 8 a.m.-5 p.m., will have a number of special festival areas, including Charcoal Barn, Casting House, and Festival Food Court (early American and contemporary).

Other areas are Early American Crafts, Engine and Mechanical Technology, a Civil War Encampment, Open Hearth Cooking Demonstration, Home Craft Marketplace and the Historic Joanna Furnace Iron Plantation Complex.

Festival attendees can shop in the Early American Crafts area for such items as fabrics, jewelry, folk art, pottery, woodworking, leather, dried flowers, woodcrafts, Windsor chairs, stained glass and hand-woven rugs.

The Craft Market will feature handmade redware pottery, candles and hand lotions, gourd birdhouses, soaps, wooden toys and bowls, handbags from vintage fabrics, quilted items and unique jewelry.

The Mechanical Technology area presents vintage working equipment, including a model steam blower engine and a display of pedal tractors. Hundreds of antique cars, tractors, and hit n’ miss engines are on display and will parade the festival grounds throughout the weekend. There will also be daily demonstrations of sawmilling, shingle milling, grain threshing and water ram pumps.

Other activities include live entertainment, storytelling sessions, musical jam sessions and a variety of hands-on activities for children. This year’s featured entertainment act is the Celtic Martin’s.

Tickets for the festival are $10 for adults and $2 for children (ages 6-12).

On September 9, it will be time for the 10th Annual Elmwood Park Zoo Oktoberfest (Elmwood Park Zoo, 1661 Harding Boulevard, Norristown, www.elmwoodparkzoo.org).

Visitors to the event, which runs from 1-4 p.m., will be able to enjoy tastings of over 100 selections of beer, wine and ciders at the scenic zoo in Montgomery County’s county seat.

As an added attraction, guests can listen to live music by Great Big House and DJ A-Run and observe the activities of interesting zoo animals. Additionally, a variety of food options will be available for purchase.

Some of the many participating breweries are Victory Brewing Company, Beach Haus Brewery, Conshohocken Brewing Company, Shock Top, Ithaca Brewing Company, Krombacher USA, Devil’s Backbone, and Magic Hat Brewing Company.

Tickets are $49 and include a complimentary tasting glass. The event is 21 and over only and will be held rain or shine.