As many as 90,000 people attended this year’s Kimmswick Strawberry Festival.
Mayor Kenneth Kraft III said on June 8 he has heard estimates as high as 85,000-90,000 people attended the two-day festival.
“I thought that was pretty dang good for the humidity,” he said. “I think we were pretty much running around 70 percent humidity all weekend.”
Kraft said there was a massive crowd of people on June 6. He said more people came out that day because rainfall was predicted on June 7.
He said most of the vendors did very well.
“There were 10-15 that completely sold out (early on Sunday) so they didn’t have anything else to sell,” Kraft said.
The Strawberry Festival is the first of two major festivals Kimmswick holds annually. The town holds the Apple Butter Festival during the final weekend of October. This year’s Apple Butter Festival will be held Oct. 24-25.
Kimmswick officials have said the Strawberry Festival and Apple Butter Festival make up about 80 percent of the town’s operating budget.
Approximately 50,000 people attended last year’s Strawberry Festival, and Kimmswick officials said the festival raised about $70,000 for the town last year. Kraft said he would not know the amount raised this year until the end of the week.
Kraft said 200 vendors were set up over the weekend, selling items such as handmade crafts, jewelry, clothing, woodworking creations and more. He said they have been moving the focus back to handmade crafts or items that are hard to find.
“There are some really neat products out there that people are making and selling themselves,” Kraft said.
There also were about 35 food and beverage vendors.
The weekend featured music performances by four bands: Grass Roots Bluegrass Band, Rocky Martin Music, Wings of Eagle and AMF Duo.
Ellie Mae’s Menagerie of Robertsville had baby kangaroos at the festival near City Park for people to pet for a fee. Other activities included face painting, henna tattoos and a Lego vendor.
For some of the merchants, it was their first big Kimmswick festival.
Jonathan and Katy Goldstein, two of the owners of Behold Coffee, on June 7 stood outside selling canned lattes and encouraging people to come inside for coffee and air conditioning.
“We didn’t know what to expect,” Jonathan said June 7. “It’s our first year. It’s been really great.”
Gina Otto, owner of Frenchy’s Café and Creperie that opened this spring, said it was a blockbuster weekend for the restaurant.
“Mother’s Day might still be our record,” she said. “Saturday was a good day for business, more so than Sunday.”
She said all the parking lots were full and the customers were steady.
Two of the employees sold mimosas outside in front of the restaurant.
“The weather could have been cooler,” she said. “It was pretty hot and humid, but it didn’t rain.”
Roger Breer, owner of Kimmswick Mercantile, had a booth outside his business so visitors could see the types of things he sells like crocheted stuffies, coffee and hot sauces.
He said the crowd started out light on June 6 but it turned out to be a good weekend.
“About what we did last year,” Breer said an hour into the event on June 7.
The next event in Kimmswick will be the Kimmswick Father’s Day Car Show from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, June 21, on Market Street. The show is open to all makes and models of vehicles.
The entry fee is $20 for vehicles. Registration will be held from 8-11 a.m. or until spaces are filled. There will only be about 200 spaces. Awards will be at 3 p.m.
Proceeds benefit the Kimmswick Visitor Center, 314 Market St. There will be a DJ and other activities.
See more photos from the event here:
