Elkins plays host to 87th ‘Mountain State Forest Festival’
By Serena Wiseman, RealWV
ELKINS, W.Va. – Almost everyone has a tradition of some sort, sometimes it could be as little as a restaurant you eat at on a certain day of the week, or a vacation during a certain month of the year. Whatever it is, traditions have been around for a long time and the annual Mountain State Forest Festival in Elkins, West Virginia is a prime example of how families and friends come together for fun and traditions for many years.
This year was the 87th year of the festival, and although it has changed some over the years, a lot of the same festivities have remained unchanged. Every year there is a “Maid Silvia,” who is chosen, as well as two maids of honor, jesters who do gymnastics and stunts to entertain the crowd, a “Woodley the Elf” who’s job is to paint the trees and mountains in the beautiful fall colors, flower girls, crown bearer, train bearer, and multiple princesses who are dressed in natures colors of red, orange, green, and any other fall color you can think of.
People from all over the Mountain State are chosen and honored to be included in the almost year long festivities of this week long festival. It starts with opening ceremonies and goes for an entire week. There is a children’s parade, a pet show with multiple categories, a talent show and other performances from other artists from all over, a fireman’s parade to acknowledge and thank all of the surrounding fire departments, a band field show that showcases the talent of high school and college bands, a coronation of Maid Silvia (who, after coronation, becomes Queen Silvia) this is where all of the jesters, Woodley the elf and all of the appointed participants have their time to shine as they walk down the coronation hill at Davis and Elkins college. Often times an elected official from Charleston will come to crown the Queen, this year it was Secretary of State Kris Warner.
Along with this there are also activities and vendors in the city park, a craft show at Davis and Elkins college as well as a local church, VFW, and Senior Center, a forestry exhibit, a quilt exhibit, a photography contest and art exhibit at two locations, a carnival with rides and games, a distinguished guest dinner, and lastly a Grand Feature parade that lasts almost 2 hours or more every year with tons of floats, antique cars, large trucks, and local elected officials. This year even Governor Morrisey walked through the parade! Throughout all of this, tradition is at the heart of the festival as a whole. Families have formed bonds and traditions that span multiple generations at this festival, sometimes even for something as simple as a Kiwanis corn dog (who’s food line is always the longest at the festival) to walking through the craft show on festival Friday, a day known in the community as one of the busiest days of the festival due to out of town family and friends coming to Elkins to enjoy the festivities and the day of the coronation. So any time I see a child walking through the festival, cotton candy in hand, I always wonder if that may just be a future Queen Silvia.
