Johnny Appleseed Festival

Introduction to the Festival

Image credits: Brett Huguenard

I've lived in Fort Wayne all my life, and this is probably my favorite local annual event that Fort Wayne has to offer. The Johnny Appleseed Festival has many things to offer for anyone of any age. There are excellent authentic foods, great shopping booths for souvenirs that are relevant to the time, awesome live musket and cannon firing demonstrations, bagpipe corps, antique shopping, and a whole lot more. Please continue reading this page and I'll tell you why I think anyone who hasn't gone to this festival should give it a try. Please visit this page often, especially around the time of each festival as I will keep updating this page with new articles, videos, and pictures, all of which I have written, filmed, and taken myself.

A Great Family Tradition for Everyone

With plenty of hotels and camping available nearby or on the fairgrounds themselves, there are plenty of accommodations available for those who don't live in the area locally.
Image credits: Brett Huguenard

As I said before, I've lived in Fort Wayne all my life and this festival is one of the local events I look forward to the most every year. When I was young, my parents only took my brother and I to the festival once as children. During my high school years and for a couple of years or so afterwards, I hadn't missed any of them. If you're not a resident of Fort Wayne but live relatively close to the area and are looking for something fun and entertaining for you and your family to do this fall, I would definitely recommend coming out and visiting this festival to see what it's all about. However, if you don't live too near Fort Wayne and you're a camper this is a perfect opportunity for you as there is camping available at the fairgrounds. If you're not too much of a camper, there are several hotels nearby with a very convenient location near one of the most active and lively parts of Fort Wayne.

Image credits: Brett Huguenard

I really think the locals of Fort Wayne that put this unique and first-rate festival together year after year do an excellent job. I'm never worried about being disappointed every time I go to the festival as I might be about some other annual events. Whether you're a Fort Wayne local or a visitor from another area and haven't been to the Johnny Appleseed Festival, I really hope that you'll give it a try. I guarantee that you won't be sorry that you did, especially when the admission to the festival is free, and always has been. As you can see in the image above, the turnout to for the festival is always quite large.

Image credits: Brett Huguenard

As trivial as it might seem now, an obvious necessity that is scattered in plentiful supply throughout the park are the bathroom facilities. The festival provides enough of these facilities that there is usually no waiting as we all know how frustrating and uncomfortable this can be. As the saying goes, "when ya gotta go, ya gotta go", and you will have no problem with this issue as you stroll around the festival. There are also first aid stations all around should you or your party have an accident or injury. Lost and found, festival information, maps, and other information can be found at the... you guessed it... Festival Information Tent, seen in the image below, located centrally within the festival grounds.

Image credits: Brett Huguenard

The Johnny Appleseed Festival of Fort Wayne, Indiana

I have lived in Fort Wayne all my life and for many of those years I have attended the Johnny Appleseed Festival. Every time I go, I discover something new and exciting about the festival that I didn't know or realize during any of my previous festival-going experiences. I have fond memories of going to this particular festival when I was very young when my parents would take my brother and I. To this day, the coming of the Johnny Appleseed Festival is something I look forward to every year.

One of my favorites aspects of the festival every year is the authentic food that is prepared and served there as it was in the days of John Chapman, or more affectionately known as Johnny Appleseed. The food served at this festival is truly one of things that keeps me coming back year after year. Due to the authentic ingredients used and the cooking-over-a-campfire method practiced by the cooks at the festival, the dishes offered there have that great, old-fashioned and home cooked taste that is so hard to find these days. Our modern methods of cooking can be greatly challenged when compared with foods created in the ways that are practiced during this festival. For myself, one incredibly tasty food stands out above the rest; the cornbread would have to be the real winner at the festival. Served with a lump of hand-churned butter on top, the cornbread at the festival is among the best and most wholesome foods I've every tasted.

For the antique lover, the Johnny Appleseed Festival can be a haven for finding rare and authentic antiques. There are several vendors with pavilions scattered amongst the festival grounds with some selling specialized or categorized antiques, while others sell more of a variety of such items. Whether someone is redecorating their home, attempting to purchase a small piece of history, or buying an antique as a gift, one can surely find it at the Johnny Appleseed Festival.

Every year at the festival, a wide range of minor reenactments can be seen and experienced by all. One of my particular favorites is the firing of the historic cannons on display at the festival. Even though I'm fully aware of just how loud these cannons are, they still make me jump every year. Musketeers in uniform can also be seen wandering around at the festival, occasionally drilling, marching, and sometimes even firing their flintlock muskets into the air, naturally with blank loads.

One of the more interesting crafts I noticed the last time I went to the Johnny Appleseed Festival was the blacksmithing booth that was on display. The workers there were using the same methods as used in earlier days to create items for sale and display at the festival. Just to watch these men and women hammer a piece of raw metal into an everyday useful item was very interesting, yet also educational. Quilt making could also be seen being demonstrated at the festival, and for those quilt collectors, the quilts go on sale when they are completed.

A favorite for many of the festival-goers every year is to see the live bagpipe performers. Playing familiar tunes such as 'Scotland the Brave', 'When the Battle is Over', and 'Reveille' can be heard as the performers march around the festival grounds. Children seem captivated by the sights and sounds of this particular aspect of the Johnny Appleseed Festival, always smiling and waving as the performers march on by them. Wearing the full Scottish attire, the performers play excellently and without tire every year as they entertain the thousands that come to the festival every year.

Whether you are a resident of Fort Wayne, the surrounding area, or perhaps even a more distant traveler, this event is never a disappointment. The men and women that organize, perform, and work at the festival do an excellent job without fail every year. The citizens of Fort Wayne are proud to have this exciting festival hosted in their great hometown, as I know I am. Anyone who has not been to the Johnny Appleseed Festival in Fort Wayne, Indiana, I greatly recommend that you come out and see what all the commotion is about when the next annual festival comes around.

-Original Article Written by Brett Huguenard

Pages

Introduction to the Festival

A Great Family Tradition for Everyone