The sixth annual event, sponsored by the Central Aroostook Chamber of Commerce, took place on the first day of the Maine Potato Blossom Festival in Fort Fairfield.
Van Buren native Travis Cyr launched Arootsakoostik in 2007 after years of performing in venues across Maine and realizing that folks in The County did not have many chances to hear the talent he was witnessing.
The parade on Sunday was one of several activities planned for the town’s three-day celebration.
Houlton’s first fair was in 1847 and it has continued in many different forms since then. In the mid-1800s the Maine Press Association invited state editors to the Houlton and Presque Isle fairs, increasing interest in the County.
On July 13, the festival will once again bring a range of musical talents to Thomas Park in New Sweden.
Hosted by Fort Fairfield since 1947, the event is one of Maine’s oldest festivals and draws people from throughout the state and beyond.
The festival, which began three years ago as an international dessert fest, has grown beyond just a culinary experience; it now includes live performances, children’s activities, a gift shop, and a live auction.
The James School, a historic restored one-room schoolhouse, welcomed more than 40 people Thursday for the annual reading of the Declaration of Independence.
The evening parade also included the fire truck and ambulance from Madawaska.
The Strawberry Shortcake sale is an annual precursor to Wednesday’s Midnight Madness, a street fair that draws close to 8,000 each year.
