Longtime Holmes County Antique Festival chair Georgie Cool may be stepping down from her post as chair after 18 years of service to the festival, but she figures if she is going out, she is going out with a bang.

This year the Holmes County Antique Festival will celebrate its 50th anniversary, and there is going to be a monumental line up of activities in order to do it up right.

“Wow, 50 years is a long time,” said Cool. “We have seen some really great times and had some wonderful experiences over the years, and this one should be the best yet.”

Saturday, Oct. 6 kicks off with the annual 5K race, which begins at the courthouse lawn and traverses through Millersburg to the east, curling down the giant hills of Port Washington Street, moving on toward Rodhe’s and then returning via the same route.

The Antique Market and arts and craft shows will take place on both days from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The market will take place on Monroe Street near the courthouse, while the arts and crafts will be located on the courthouse lawn.

At 10:30 a.m., one of the biggest draws of the weekend will take place when the Millersburg Glass Auction will be conducted under the big tent on the courthouse lawn.

With more than 330 pieces and an estimated $330,000 in value ready to hit the auction block, it should make for a fantastic time for those who collect the stunning carnival glass that has become renowned worldwide, and for those who are just curious.

“It is going to be something pretty special,” said Cool of the auction. “Millersburg Glass continues to become more and more a part of what brings people to this area, and there is going to be some truly incredible pieces up for bid. Even if you aren’t interested in purchasing anything, it is worth it just to walk over and see the quality of glass that is there. It is breathtaking.”

If glass isn’t your thing, then maybe a pageant is. The Antique Festival Princess and Queen contests will take place Saturday at the Millersburg Christian Church at 10 a.m. and noon respectively. Current reigning royalty Queen Becca Chanay and Princess Ashly Phillips will be handing their crowns to new royalty in what is always a beautiful pageant.

There will also be a pair of jumping pits for the kids, located on S. Monroe Street, which will help them burn off some of that energy.

The Darb Snyder Memorial Classic Car Show will take place at Snyder Bros. Trucking just east of town from 1-4 p.m., and countless classics, muscle cars and more will line up, with hoods open for car connoisseurs to take a peek at what drives these good-looking automobiles.

Sunday, Oct. 7 will begin with the market and arts and crafts, and at 12:30 p.m. those amazing lumberjacks will grace the festival with their incredible talents and skills with anything sharp. The show will take place at the large stage area on East Jackson Street.

Also on Sunday there will be plenty of kids games and activities under the big tent on the courthouse lawn that families won’t want to miss.

Then comes the always impressive grand parade, something Cool said is probably the main reason so many people have circled this date on their calendar.

“It is amazing how this parade just keeps getting bigger and bigger,” said Cool. “We’ve gotten such great support from the community, and so many businesses and organization always make sure we have a ton of entries.

“Our grand parade group does an amazing job at getting things organized and setting up a parade that is memorable and meaningful.”

All of the past royalty has been invited back for the big 50th bash, and the parade is expected to be bigger and better than ever because of the significance of the celebration.

Cool said that the games before the parade, along with the kids tractor pull following it, provide a fantastic afternoon of fun for families.

And best of all, said Cool, is that all of the entertainment is absolutely free.

“If you’ve never seen the kids tractor pull after the parade, it is worth coming to watch, because these kids are a real hoot,” said Cool.

As each day moves along, there will be plenty of fair food style vendors providing all kinds of dining options.
Throughout the weekend there will be plenty of awesome entertainment to help make a festive atmosphere. Cool said that they figured for something as special as the 50th anniversary, they wanted to stay local in bringing in their entertainment.

“We’ve got such an incredible group of people right here in Holmes County who can entertain, so we wanted to stay close to home with our entertainment slate this year,” said Cool.

That schedule would include the West Holmes Chamber Choir, Tanya Phillips of Glenmont, Dave Tennant of Killbuck and the wildly popular group Route 62 & Friends, which will feature a Jimmy Buffet tribute from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Saturday night at the main stage area on East Jackson Street. The chamber choir will perform on Saturday, from 1:30-2:30 p.m. on the courthouse stage, and will be followed by Scott Miller from 3:30-4:30 p.m. Phillips and Tennant take the stage from 5:30-6:30 p.m.
“It’s going to be something special this year,” said Cool of the festival. “This event has been a little unique in that we went through a lull, and then we came back really strong, and now it is more popular than ever.”