Hayrides, a pumpkin patch, live music, and local vendors are set to fill the grounds of the Pinellas Pioneer Settlement this Saturday as St. Petersburg's Annual Autumn Harvest Festival returns for another year. The family event runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on October 10 at the Pinellas Pioneer Settlement, adjacent to Boyd Hill Nature Preserve, blending old-fashioned fall recreation with the preserve's living-history setting.
The announcement came via a social media post from St. Petersburg, FL
, inviting residents to a full day of crafts, food, and family activities. According to an official
City of St. Petersburg
event guide published earlier this month, admission runs $5 per person, with kids ages 3 and under getting in free, while food is sold separately at the event.
Proceeds Support Park Conservation
Organizers announced that money raised from ticket sales directly benefits the Friends of Boyd Hill Nature Preserve. The group supports the preserve's mission, while the Birds of Prey Aviary cares for injured birds of prey. The city noted in the same release that the proceeds support the preserve, tying a day of pumpkin picking to ongoing environmental efforts.
That conservation mission is baked into the venue itself. Boyd Hill Nature Preserve spans 245 protected acres along Lake Maggiore and contains five distinct Florida habitats, a Birds of Prey aviary exhibit, and the Terry Tomalin Campground, according to the city.
A Living-History Setting Inside the Preserve
The festival takes place at the Pinellas Pioneer Settlement, a living history museum located adjacent to Boyd Hill Nature Preserve that demonstrates late 19th-century Florida settler skills and crafts, per Visit St. Petersburg Clearwater. Volunteers staff the settlement to keep those historic trades and crafts alive for visitors.
Visitors wandering the trails at Boyd Hill Nature Preserve can also spot permanent public art, including twin scrap-metal armadillo sculptures by the late St. Petersburg artist Paul Eppling, built from discarded machinery and auto parts, as reported by Creative Pinellas. It's a small but distinctive touch that sets the festival apart from typical fall pop-ups, blending junkyard art with 19th-century craftsmanship.
Autumn Activities at the Settlement
The October 10, 2026, Autumn Harvest Festival will offer family activities at Pinellas Pioneer Settlement.
Saturday is a busy day for city-sponsored fall programming across St. Petersburg. St. Petersburg Fire Rescue is holding its Fire Rescue Block Party at Fossil Park the same day, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., featuring fire truck tours and safety resources. Meanwhile, as Hoodline reported, the city's pumpkin patch returns with mini-golf at the St. Pete Pier waterfront, giving families around town more than one place to soak up the season this month.
