102 Days + Nights of Summer: September 2018

Whether you’re looking for small-town festivals or big-city events, great live music or outdoor fun, we have plenty of ideas to fill your calendar this summer. Select a month below and check out our suggestions for each day. If you’re looking for more Ohio happenings, visit our searchable event calendar at ohiomagazine.com/events.

102 DAYS + NIGHTS: 
MAY | JUNE | JULY | AUGUST | SEPTEMBER

9/1: Step into History
Check out the Made in Ohio Arts & Crafts Festival as Hale Farm & Village celebrates its 60th anniversary.

Scenic and serene, with open meadows and buildings that date back more than 200 years, Hale Farm & Village teems with history, from docents churning butter in 19th-century garb to the clank of a blacksmith’s hammer in the distance.

The living history museum, which was founded in 1958, celebrates its 60th anniversary in 2018 with a slate of activities and events, including the Made in Ohio Arts & Crafts Festival, Aug. 31 through Sept. 2. The festival, now in its ninth year, welcomes 160 Ohio-based artists and artisans to display and sell their work while visitors enjoy food, live music and demonstrations.

“They’re always bringing new items,” says Jason Klein, director of Hale Farm & Village. “They’re not large-scale production type of things that they sell, so the items that they bring back year after year are always changing and evolving.”

Artists are chosen for the festival by a jury, which makes selections based on diversity of arts and crafts. This year, mediums such as furniture, carvings, glass, pottery, photography and textiles will be featured.

“Hale Farm and Village, for the last 60 years, has had a very vibrant craft and trade program,” Klein adds.

John Hale purchased 500 acres from the Connecticut Land Co. in 1810, and his family lived in the Cuyahoga Valley for three generations. Since being converted to a living history museum, Hale Farm & Village hosts tours, exhibits, workshops and other events on its 90 acres. For Klein, it’s the continuation of the land’s rich heritage that makes a visit all the more impactful.

“All the things we do on a daily basis — all the interpretations and historic structures and heritage livestock and the gardens — they’re all part of the experience,” Klein adds.  — Jordana Joy

2686 Oak Hill Rd., Bath 44210, 330/666-3711, halefarm.org

9/2: Leave your history books on the shelf. The Fort Rowdy Gathering offers food, crafts and entertainment at Miami County’s Covington Community Park. Cross the 208-foot-long footbridge, and step back to a pre-1840s encampment complete with bow shooting, spear throwing and more. Sept. 1–3, fortrowdy.org

9/3: Close out summer with a bang! The Fulton County Fair packs in tractor pulls, harness racing and all your midway favorites, but you won’t want to miss the high-impact thrills of the crowd-pleasing Demolition Derby. Aug. 31–Sept. 6, fultoncountyfair.com