Missouri Town 1855 is marking a half-century of autumn tradition this year, hosting its 50th Annual Fall Festival of Arts, Crafts and Music at the living-history village inside Fleming Park. The festival celebrates the autumn harvest much as it would have been observed nearly 200 years ago, with historic buildings and living-history interpreters.
The milestone event takes place at Fleming Park, located at 8010 E Park Road in Lee's Summit, Missouri, according to Kansas City Mom Collective. Living-history interpreters are on hand to bring to life what autumn looked like in the mid-1800s, walking festivalgoers through the sights and rhythms of a 19th-century harvest season. As reported by FOX4KC, the festival is held in Lee's Summit, Missouri, and includes a full weekend of seasonal activities built around that same historic theme.
Artisans, Games and Old-Fashioned Music Fill the Village
Visitors can wander through the Lost Arts area to watch skilled artisans at work, a hallmark of the festival's hands-on approach to history, per the same Kansas City Mom Collective account. FOX4KC reports that the festival also features historic artisans at work elsewhere on the grounds, alongside old-fashioned music that sets the tone for the weekend. Tours of pre-Civil War buildings give visitors a closer look at the structures that make up the village itself.
Classic 19th-century pastimes round out the family-friendly programming, including the game of graces, hoop rolling and ring toss, all according to FOX4KC's reporting. The festival also offers food, lively music, games and family-friendly vendors, the kind of mix that Kansas City Mom Collective describes as “delicious food, lively music, fun games, and family-friendly vendors.” Together, the activities are meant to give modern festivalgoers a taste of what fall entertainment looked like for a 19th-century Missouri community.
A Quilt Show — and a New Community Project — Mark the Milestone
Inside the Old Church, the festival hosts a quilt show displaying handmade quilts that trace the evolution of the craft, according to FOX4KC. Connie Studyvin, quoted in that report, said the quilt show includes quilts made in the 1800s, mid-century hand quilting and applique, and modern applique quilts, spanning generations of needlework under one roof.
For the 50th anniversary, Missouri Town 1855 is creating a community quilt specifically tied to the celebration, with a community quilt panel that allows everyone attending to add their own signature. Volunteers plan to quilt the community quilt blocks together this winter, and the finished piece is set to be displayed at Missouri Town next year, FOX4KC reports.
Ahead of the festival, KCTV5's Shane and Kerrigan visited with Superintendent of Historic Sites Amy Coale to preview the 50th Annual Missouri Town Fall Festival of Arts, Crafts and Music, according to KCTV5. The preview underscored the festival's continuing run as an annual fall tradition, with Kansas City Mom Collective describing the occasion simply as “Celebrating 50 years of Fall Fun!”
