The 26th annual Little Levels Heritage Fair takes place June 28–30 in Hillsboro, West Virginia.
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The traditional lifestyle in the Little Levels of Pocahontas County, West Virginia, can be summarized like this: “You do nothing on the Sabbath but go to church and eat.” One of the Little Levels Heritage Fair’s founding purposes was to hark back, preserve, and represent a slower and simpler time of life.
The first Little Levels Heritage Fair was held in June of 1998 to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the Town of Hillsboro—the oldest incorporated town in Pocahontas County, situated on famous U.S. Route 219. Also known as the Seneca Indian Trail, Route 219 runs all the way from Canada to Georgia.
The very first fair held in Pocahontas County, held in 1913, was a Horse Fair that included horse and mule races. If you look hard, one can still see the race ring on Beard Road near Tommy and Linda VanReenen’s place. Both are descendants of some of the oldest families in the Little Levels, where eight bicentennial farms are still in operation today.
One main reason the Fair is scheduled for the end of June each year is to celebrate the birthday of the first woman to win the Nobel Prize for Literature: Pearl S. Buck, who was born Hillsboro on June 26, 1892. The Pearl S. Buck Birthplace Museum celebrates its own 50th birthday in August this year.
This year’s Little Levels Heritage Fair—or LLHF, as locals know it—takes place June 28–30 and promotes and showcases live music, provided exclusively by local musicians, as well as primarily local arts and crafts vendors. Locally sourced and prepared BBQ will be the Saturday delectable, as well as a few other lighter options as fundraising for local youth organizations and sports teams. Attendees are encouraged to stay for Saturday’s Heritage Parade, featuring classic cars from the adjudicated car show as well as locally owned classic and modern tractors, floats, and livestock. Saturday’s festivities wind up with a square dance under the big tent with mountain music provided by local old-time legends Juanita Fireball & the Continental Drifters. On Sunday, fairgoers are encouraged to attend a service of their choice in the historic churches of Southern Pocahontas County and embark on historic town and cemetery tours as well as the McNeel Mill at Mill Point, West Virginia. Sunday evening Vespers is a Fair tradition honoring the life and community service of a resident of the area. Taking place around 8 p.m. at the top of the hill on McNeel Cemetery, Vespers offers a serene and spectacular view of the rolling farmland that makes the Little Levels region of Pocahontas County so idyllic.
More information, including vendor applications and Heritage Fair Pie Contest rules, can be found at the Fair’s website.
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