Step back in time at Munson Heritage Festival
To the steady clatter of a treadle-operated sewing machine, disparate pieces of colorful cloth slowly transformed into a handsome pair of lady’s bloomers.
But no matter the quality of the stitchery, the garment’s cloth’s origin remained undisguised: it started as an imprinted flour sack.
Traditional early American crafts and daily rural practices will once more be showcased at this weekend’s Munson Community Heritage Festival.
The Blackwater River State Forest’s Krul Recreation Area is the setting for a variety of demonstrations, displays, food and a fascinating glimpse into a way of life long gone by.
Living history demonstrations will include practices from the seemingly mundane, such as plowing a field with a horse-drawn plow, to the creative, such as the artistry of quilt making.
See a functioning water-powered gristmill, learn how meat was preserved by smoking, watch as syrup is extracted during sugarcane grinding, and see how great-grandmother cooked on her wood-burning cast iron stove.
As American life turns more urban, few kids today have the opportunity to discover where their mealtime glasses of milk come from.
During the Heritage festival, they’ll not only see how a cow is milked, they’ll get to try it themselves.
Take an up-close look at the Panhandle’s moonshining tradition as an old still is fired up. You can sample the product as much as you’d like, said Forester Ben Woolcott, “but it’s just distilled water.”
Admission is free for this journey back to the rural Florida northwest of the 19th century.
IF YOU GO:
The entrance to Krul Recreation Area is on state Highway 4, just east of county Highway 191 in Santa Rosa County, a 30-minute drive from Milton or Crestview.
Festival hours: Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Free admission. For information, call (850) 957-6140.