Celebrating West Virginia: Summer Fairs and Festivals

By Samantha Cart

Every year, communities across West Virginia host a variety of fairs and festivals to celebrate the importance of Appalachian culture. From county fairs to unique arts and crafts shows, the Mountain State honors its mixed heritage of music, art and food while commemorating its people’s rich history of hard work and tradition. From the state’s small towns to big cities, visitors and residents alike will discover what makes West Virginia almost heaven.

Mountain Music Festival
June 5-6 • Fayetteville, WV
ACE Adventure Resort
www.mountainmusicfestwv.com

Choose from outdoor adventures during the day and live performance in the gorge after sunset at the Mountain Music Festival. ACE Adventure Resort’s 1,500-acre property is the perfect setting for a weekend of experiencing the best of the Mountain State. Choose between whitewater rafting, zip lining, mountain biking, rock climbing, stand-up paddle boating, paintball, mud racing or disc golf, or try them all during this two-day event. In between adventures, check out ACE’s workshops and clinics, which are designed for attendees who take an interest in a specific aspect of the weekend to connect with professionals and local businesses. Workshops include Slacking with West Virginia Slackline, Morning Yoga with Kula Yoga Studio, Hoop Jam with BlueSkye Hoops, Flow & Poi Workshop with Easy Wind Family Creations and Disc Golf Clinics with Explore Disc Golf. The large stage at ACE Resort will play host to the musical talents of The Deal McCoury Band, Keller Williams, The Larry Keel Experience, Papadosio and more.

West Virginia Coal Festival
June 16-20 • Madison, WV
www.boonecountywv.org

The 22nd annual West Virginia Coal Festival is a celebration of coal mining and Mountain State heritage. Enjoy free concerts and mine machinery displays; tour the Coal Heritage Museum and end the evening with live music and a fireworks display. This year’s event will feature performers Matt Stillwell and 7 Bridges, the Ultimate Eagles Experience; Rick Huckaby and Little Texas; Autumn Blair and Katie Ohh, as well as a parade, miner’s memorial service, carnival rides, a beauty pageant and more. This year’s parade will include miners honoring the Upper Big Branch disaster. New to the event, the Boone County Community and Economic Development Corporation held the first-ever Coal Field Idol singing contest in April, and the winner will be the opening act on Saturday night at the festival.

FestivALL 2015
June 19-28 • Charleston, WV
www.festivallcharleston.com

FestivALL provides a diverse cultural experience for the Capital City. This collaboration of city leadership, local businesses and civic and arts organizations will feature visual arts, music, theater, dance and film events planned around the city for a 10-day arts celebration. Main events will include productions by the Charleston Light Opera Guild; Mountain Stage; riverboat rides; Smoke on the Water Chili Cook-Off; Dance Gala; The Mayor’s Concert; Blues, Brews & BBQ; Wine & All That Jazz; Moses Automotive’s Live on the Levee free concert series and West Virginia International Film Festival screenings. New to this year’s event are American author, actor and humorist John Hodgman; performances by Joseph Cashore’s Marionettes; Community Keys, a public art display featuring upright pianos painted and designed by area artists, and the Children’s Art Fair.

Fire on the Mountain Chili Cook-Off
July 10-11 • Snowshoe, WV
Snowshoe Mountain Resort
www.snowshoemtn.com

The 24th annual Fire on the Mountain Chili Cook-Off is a two-day competition for cash prizes and bragging rights. Participants compete in three competitions—salsa, chili verde and red chili—while the crowd enjoys Snowshoe Village, which hosts West Virginia artisans, craft vendors, live entertainment, village games and a mountaintop fireworks display to end the weekend.

John Henry Days Festival
July 10-12 • Talcott, WV
John Henry Historical Park
www.johnhenryhistoricalpark.com

The annual John Henry Days is a three-day festival starting with a concert near the Great Bend Tunnel and ending with a rubber duck race at the Talcott Bridge overlooking the Greenbrier River. Using the legend of American folk hero John Henry as a symbol of strength and an advocate of the working class, the festival aims to encourage West Virginians to celebrate the sacrifice working-class Americans made to help the nation grow. The park has shelters, walking trails and an amphitheater, and the celebration includes a parade, a four-mile run/one-mile walk, West Virginia vendors and live music. Make sure to stop by the John Henry Station visitor’s center and tour the John Henry Museum.

New Deal Festival
July 11 • Arthurdale, WV
www.newdealfestival.org

Step back in time for the day at the New Deal Festival in Arthurdale, WV. This 1930s-style festival celebrates the history of the country’s first New Deal homestead community. Originally known as the Reedsville Project, government employees were sent to Preston County, WV to establish a New Deal community during Franklin Roosevelt’s first term as president. With the land purchased from and renamed for Richard Arthur, 165 homes, several community buildings and a school complex were built as a home for displaced miners and their families. Homesteaders paid rent, worked and farmed their allotted acreage and were employed to build new homes and work the gas station, cooperative store, post office and craft shop for a self-sustaining community to battle the effects of the Great Depression. Visitors can tour the historic community, stop by the antique car and tractor show, watch artisan demonstrations and enjoy a quilt show. There will be visits from Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, delicious food, live music, children’s activities, a craft market, hay wagon rides and more.

Upper Ohio Valley Italian Festival
July 24-26 • Wheeling, WV
Wheeling Heritage Port
www.italyfest.com

The Upper Ohio Valley Italian Heritage Festival began in 1983 and quickly became one of the largest outdoor festivals in the Upper Ohio Valley. Created to celebrate Italian culture and heritage, today the festival is the second-largest Italian festival in the United States, and it is estimated that more than 150,000 people enjoy it every year. The festival features live music, a guitar competition, veterans appreciation ceremony, cooking demonstrations, fireworks and a street full of delicious Italian food and wares. The board of directors uses proceeds from the event to award annual scholarships to regional college-bound students. Each year, 13 $1,000 scholarships are awarded in a ceremony, and to date, the festival scholarship program has distributed more than $250,000.

West Virginia State Fair
August 14-23 • Lewisburg, WV
West Virginia State Fair Grounds
www.statefairofwv.com

Join residents from all across the Mountain State and surrounding areas for the West Virginia State Fair. The culmination of summer fairs and festivals, the West Virginia State Fair features concerts, competitions, rides and quintessential fair food. Take a ride on the Ferris wheel and enjoy a decadent funnel cake before one of the fair’s feature concerts. The 2015 lineup includes Alabama, 3 Doors Down, Phil Dirt Presents Surf’s Up!: A Tribute to the Beach Boys, The Marshall Tucker Band and the Roots and Boots Tour with Aaron Tippin, Sammy Kershaw and Joe Diffie. Other live entertainment includes the National Tractor Pullers Association Grand Nationals and the Buckin’ B Bull Ride. Enjoy the outdoor flea market and antique show; peruse state projects of Future Farmers of America and 4-H members or attend a livestock or horse show.

Appalachian Festival
August 28-30 • Beckley, WV
www.appalachianfestival.net

The 19th Annual Appalachian Festival is a three-day event where guests can treat themselves to the wares of more than 100 artisans, experience local cuisine and enjoy live performances by Mountain State musicians. There is truly something for everyone, from the Taste of Beckley block party showcasing local cuisine to performances by the New River Jazz Band, John Covey Cole and Piney Creek Canyon Band to ghost tours that explore Beckley’s haunted sites. Visitors can take an underground tour of the Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine, check out the more than 100 classic automobiles at the 18th Annual Oldies Car Show or experience the view from the rim at the Main Overlook at Grandview National Park.