The Retro Town Fair, a popular addition to 2012’s Labor Day Festival, recreates the Town Fairs of early Greenbelt. The first Town Fair was held in 1939, after a request from the Garden Club to the City Council that a flower competition be held. Council expanded the plan to include canned goods, baked goods, and needlework. The Fair also included concerts, puppet shows, athletic contests, and more. Many of these elements have been incorporated into our modern Labor Day Festival, but the “County Fair” style judging for this event pays homage to that earliest of celebrations created by our predecessors in Greenbelt. Start planning your submissions! Brought to you by the Greenbelt Museum and Friends of the Greenbelt Museum.
The Fair takes place on the grounds of the Museum house at 10B Crescent on Sunday, 1-4pm. The Greenbelt Museum’s Retro Town Fair is much like those the earliest Greenbelters enjoyed starting in 1939. Ribbons are awarded for the best entries in a number of categories, including flowers, vegetables, baked goods, canned goods and needlework/sewing. Entries accepted 10-11:30am. Winners on display 1-4pm. All items must be picked up between 4-5pm
All of the information to enter will be at greenbeltmuseum.org.
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2026 Retro Town Fair Winners:
Baked Goods
Apple Pie, Emily Day — Purple
Bread, Grace Shipps — Purple
Hawaiian Dream Dessert, Rita Sayer — Purple
Maraschino Cherry Cake, JoEllen Sarff — Purple
Persian Love Cookies, Sofia Olkiewicz — Purple
Cherry Chocolate Chippers, Julia Kender — Blue
Depression Cake Bars, Geraldine Adams — Blue
Earl Grey & Mandarin Madeleines, Raven Holm — Blue
Apple Pan Dowdy, JoEllen Sarff — Red
Chocolate Chip Cookies, Sofia Olkiewicz — Red
Chocolate Gingerbread Bites, Judy Parker — Red
Kentucky Sawdust Pie, Donna Peterson — Red
Canned Goods
Pickled Cabbage, Onion & Kale, Jon Gardner — Purple
Strawberry Jam & Juneberry Jam, Mark Via — Purple
Red Pepper Jelly, Marni Siegel — Blue
Spiced Blueberry Jam, Marni Siegel — Blue
Cherry Tomato Jam, Melissa Ehrenreich — Red
Jam, Melissa Ehrenreich — Red
Mulberry Jam, Karen Knee & Maggie Brown — Red
Jam, Cary Coppock — White
Produce
Corn Stalk, Petra Sanchez — Purple
Assorted Peppers, Petra Sanchez — Blue
Assorted Produce, Ben G. — Blue
Three Sisters from a GHI Garden (Gourd, Flour Corn and Tiger Eye Beans), Hannah Hethman — Blue
Apples, Lei Zong — Red
Gourd and Tomatoes, Katrina Boverman — Red
Flowers
Floral Arrangement in Large Glass Vase, Sharon Schneider — Purple
Floral Arrangement in Frog Vase, Raven Holm — Blue
Floral Arrangement in Large Glass Vase, Katrina Boverman — Blue
Floral Arrangement in Teal Ceramic Pot, Raven Holm — Blue
Floral Arrangement in Red Cup, Clare Alexander — Red
Floral Arrangement in Small Glass Vase, Heather Mortimer — Red
Crafts
Adorned Green Hat, Xander Williams — Purple
Broom, Vanessa Zanin — Purple
Fiber Art Piece, Cathy Jones — Blue
Christmas Spoons, Donna Peterson — Red
Bib & Pillow, Margaret Duran — White
Needlework
Crochet dragon, Lyla Lawless — Purple
Needlepoint picture, Anne Gardner — Purple
Blue green knitting, Cathy Jones — Blue
Blue yellow knit shawl, Marni Siegel — Blue
Crochet earrings, Petra Sanchez — Blue
Crochet scarf, Petra Sanchez — Blue
Embroidery stocking, Corrina Sowden — Blue
Green knitting shawl, Marni Siegel — Blue
Green white crochet shawl, Sara Tibebu — Blue
Knit red vest, Lyla Lawless — Blue
Purple knit vest, Nicole Shyong — Blue
Embroidery pillow, Joan Conway — Red
Indigo sewing Shibari pillow, Joan Conway — Red
Knit owl, Ansley Sink — Red
Knit shawl multicolor, Rosie Weaver — Red
White and black sweater knit, Whitley Sink — White
