Who: The Canal District Alliance with the CanalFest Committee
What: A giant street festival featuring horse-drawn wagon tours of the neighborhood, food from neighborhood restaurants, and musicians, dancers and street performers. A real party. But the best of CanalFest will be a full-sized water-filled replica of the Blackstone Canal … sitting just above the original buried under Harding Street.
Time: Saturday, September 6th, 2008 from 11 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Place: Harding Street in Worcester, MA between Temple and Winter Streets
(South of Union Station and north of Kelley Square, next to the old Patrick Motors lot)
Cost: Entry to CanalFest is free. You pay only for the food you order.
Replica of the Canal:
- 75 ft long x 18 ft wide
- Filled with 4500 gallons of water weighing over 40 tons
- A backdrop for discussion and interpretation of the Blackstone Canal
- Sponsored by the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor
- Constructed by members of Carpenters Local 107
Entertainment: Live music, dancers, storytelling.
Food: Tasty and varied from over 20 local restaurants and food vendors. Please see list on the Event page.
Exhibits and Crafts: Local shops and craftspeople offer their wares for sale and for viewing.
Other:
- Children’s Activities, some based on Canal history and some just fun
- Money raffle 50/50 to profit Canal District Alliance.
- An Artists area showcasing local artists and artisans
- A definite Irish tone, since digging the canal first brought the Irish here
- Cultural diversity, like the Canal District itself
Benefits: The Canal District Alliance and its efforts to create a replica of the historic canal down Harding Street from Union Station to Kelley Square.
Contact: Seth Derderian Tel: (508)757-1434 or email info@blackstonecanal.org