Country Fair at Heritage Center is hit for all ages

Blue skies brought out big crowds as the Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center celebrated its annual Blue Ribbon Country Fair.

Nancy Williams, marketing director with the center in Townsend, said organizers were pleased with the turnout for the Sept. 24 event. “It went great, and we had one of our best fairs ever. The weather was perfect, and it was a good crowd,” she said.

Williams said there were repeat visitors to the interactive Farmer in the Cove exhibit.

“Kids lined up to go through it and do the kinds of chores farm people did 100 years ago like picking apples, gathering eggs, sweeping floors and doing laundry by hand,” she said.

Williams thanked volunteers for making the fair possible. “Our volunteers came through; this event would not happen without them. We’re lucky to have each and every one of them,” she said.

Williams said one competition that was different this year was the signature Best Pie in the Cove competition. “This is the fifth year for the contest and for the first four years, apple pies won the overall Best Pie prize,” she said. “This year, it was won with a chocolate cream pie made by Judge Robert Headrick.”