Harvest Moon Festival is this weekend

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

The fourth Saturday in September brings with it the first full weekend of fall and the seventh annual Harvest Moon Festival in downtown Van Wert.

This year’s installment, sponsored by Main Street Van Wert and the Van Wert Freedom Cruise, will take place from 4 p.m. to midnight this Saturday, September 24. Previous editions of the Harvest Moon Festival attracted hundreds of people to the downtown area. The festival was canceled in 2020, due to COVID-19.

“We are excited about this year’s Harvest Moon Festival,” Main Street Van Wert Executive Director Joe Dray said. “It’s great when we can partner with other organizations like Visit Van Wert and the Freedom Cruise to put on a quality event for the community. Activities will stretch down Main Street from Shannon Street to Market Street and there will be something for the whole family.”

The Lee Warren Band, which typically performs classic rock and country, will headline the event with a concert at 7:30 p.m and the Ohio State-Wisconsin game, which will kick off at 7:30 p.m., will be on display in front of the Main Street office.

Other offerings will include more than 20 craft vendors, games for the kids, face painting and pumpkin painting from 4-6 p.m., a beer tent from 4-11 p.m., courthouse tours from 3-6 p.m., and a Freedom Cruise Car Show from 3-8 p.m. at the west end of Main St. and Jefferson St. The Freedom Cruise will begin at 8 p.m. and run until midnight along Central Avenue.

Several food trucks, including One Love Food Truck, Pull Up and Grill, The Flying Burrito, Hot Dish Midwest Comfort Food, Fat Pig Smokehouse, Convoy Coffee and CJ’s Shaved Ice will be downtown.

The following streets will be closed from 12 p.m. Saturday until 1 a.m. Sunday:

• Main St., between Washington St. and Market St.
• Main St., from Washington St. to Shannon St., and both West and East Court St.
• Jefferson St., from Main St. to Central Ave.