WHERE AND WHEN
President Mirta M. Martin’s
Welcome
Welcome Home! I am pleased to welcome you to our beautiful campus for the fifty-second annual Blue Ridge Folklife Festival.
For more than a century, Ferrum College has provided distinctive educational experiences to students from our region, throughout the Commonwealth, and more recently, from across the nation and around the world. The Blue Ridge Folklife Festival continues this proud tradition by celebrating the rich cultural heritage and enduring spirit of the Blue Ridge region.
Thank you for being part of this special event. I hope you enjoy the festival, the fellowship, and the spirit of community that make Ferrum College and the Blue Ridge so unique. Welcome Home!
Mirta M. Martin, Ph.D.
President, Ferrum College
Please Note
• Festival activities run all day except as noted in schedule.
• Last-minute changes will be posted on festival grounds.
• Please bring lost children and found objects to the Information Tent in the field southwest of Adams Lake.
Festival Ribbon Cutting - 9:30AM
Celebrate the festival opening at the BRIM with Ferrum College, BRIM, and community leaders, and the talented Hillary Klug!
Information
Find information at the BRIM and the Information Tent in field southwest of Adams Lake.
First Aid
First aid is available in the Riddick Hall parking lot located above the Coon Dog Area and the BRIM.
ATMs
Find ATMs at the BRIM back porch and the Indoor Crafts Area in the Ferrum College Fitness Center.
Children’s Games & Petting Zoo
Children’s games & the petting zoo will be held 10:00AM to 4:00 PM at the Blue Ridge Farm Museum.
Live Auction Benefiting the Blue Ridge Folklife Festival
Don’t miss the live auction after the horse pull! Unique finds for everyone including quilts, tickets to the Natural History Museum, Roanoke Country Club foursome and golf lesson — and proceeds support the Blue Ridge Folklife Festival.
Alumni Hospitality Center & Admissions
Find the Ferrum College alumni hospitality tent and visit with College admissions team members on the lower patio of Stanley Library from 10:00AM to 1:00PM.
Coon Dog Water Racing
Coon Dog Contests
Field west of Adams Lake
• Open Grade Bench Show–10:00AM
• Treeing Contest–12:00 PM
• Virginia State Coon Dog Water Race–1:30PM Sponsored by Cornerstone Surveying
Horse Pulling Contest Sanctioned by the Blue Ridge Horse Pullers Association
Horse & Mule Events
Blue Ridge Farm Museum
• Team Horse & Mule Log Skidding–10:00AM
• Virginia State Championship Coon Mule Jumping Contest–11:00AM
• Horse Pulling Contest–12:00PM
• Plowing Demonstration–1:00PM & 3:30PM
WHERE AND WHEN
Crafts
Indoor Crafts
Ferrum Fitness Center–Wiley Drive
Outdoor Crafts
Blue Ridge Farm Museum
Crafts include quilting, chair caning, soap making, herbal products, wood carving, spinning, vegetable dyeing, instrument making, turkey calls, distilling, basket weaving, hog butchering, crocheting, and more.
Car Show, Steam & Gas
Vintage Cars
Thunder In the Blue Ridge Car Show
Field west of the Blue Ridge Institute & Museum
See 1986 or older original & restored cars, trucks, street rods, street machines, oval track racers, drag cars, and more.
Coordinated by Outlaw Cruisers Car Club of Franklin Co., VA and sponsored by Duncan Auto & imports
Living
History
Demonstrations
Living history demos will take place throughout the day at the Blue Ridge Farm Museum
Ham Radio Broadcast
W4M-Whiskey 4 Moonshine global radio broadcast at the Blue Ridge Farm Museum.
Museum Exhibits
Blue Ridge Institute & Museum
• The BRIM Looks Back: A Sampling of Exhibits, 1973–2024 features some of our favorite artifacts and treasures from the last 51 years.
• The Vanishing Schools of Franklin County by Benny and Abe Gibson. Father and son uncovered nearly 200 schools that operated in Franklin County, VA over a 50-year period.
Moonshine, Beer, & Wine
Creekside at the Blue Ridge Farm Museum
Moonshine tasting with 5 Mile Mountain Distillery
Moonshine Tasting (Age 21+, $)
• 5 Mile Mountain Distillery
Moonshiner’s Still
Moonshiner’s Lore Featuring the Law Family
• Tales from Makers–10:30AM & 2:00PM
• Book signing by Henry Lee Law–11:30AM & throughout the day
Moonshine Merchandise Tent
Beer & Wine Garden (Age 21+, $)
• Living Proof Beer Company
• Brooks Mill Winery
Antique Powered Hay Baling Demonstration
Antique Engines and Tractors
Field southwest of Adams Lake
• Wheat Threshing 10:30AM, 12:30PM, 2:30PM
• Shingle Milling 11:30AM, 1:30PM, 3:30PM
• Rock Crushing 11:00AM, 1:00PM, 3:00PM
Coordinated by Southwest Virginia Antique Power Association & sponsored by Franklin Welding & Tractor Supply
Traditional & Other Foods
Across from Vaughn Chapel
Fried Fish Dinner–True Friends of Truevine
Fried Apple Pies–Our Kitchen Caterers
Adams Lake (Southwest Creekside Field)
Pork BBQ, Roasted Peanuts, Lemonade–BBQ Man
Funnel Cakes–Poobie’s Kwik Stop
Fried Chicken & Sides–Fryn’ Knives
Fried Apple Pies–Carolyn’s Pies
Ferrum Fitness Center Area
Sweet Potato Pies & Cobblers–Blossoms Savories & Sweets
Outside Crafts
Blue Ridge Farm Museum
Joe Allen–Blacksmithing
Lois Brubaker–Bread Making
Jackson Cunningham–Guitar Making
Peyton Fenton–Birdhouses
Kevin Fore–Banjo Making
Library Parking Lot (Wiley Drive)
Honey–Wyatt Family
Pork Rinds & Hot Apple Cider–Meador Family
Ice Cream & Cornmeal–Bolt Milling
Country Ham Biscuits & Coffee–Meador Family
Blue Ridge Farm Museum
Apple Butter–Cedar Bluff Church of the Brethren
Brunswick Stew, Pulled Chicken, Pulled Pork, Sides–
Rocky Mount Smokehouse
Desserts–Lizzy’s Baking Corner
Fried Chicken–Tammy’s Grill
Kettle Korn–Meador Family
Craftspeople
Inside Crafts
Ferrum Fitness Center, Wiley Drive
Tony Boyd–Turkey Calls
Tom Brown–Apple Lore
Shirley Hodges–Embroidery and Cross Stitching
Hook-in-Hand Exchange–Rug Hooking
Mary Beckner Houseman–Stuffed Animals, Dolls
Joyce Gordon–Canning –10:00AM–12:00PM
Clyde Jenkins–Baskets and Apples
Henry Lee Law & Austin Law–Distilling
Midwives of the Blue Ridge –10:00AM–12:30PM
Terry Peters–Hog Butchering
Reynolds Homestead–Vegetable Dyeing
Ethelene Stanley–Soap Making
Virginia Tourism Corporation
Virginia Humanities
Virginia Commission for the Arts
Southwest Virginia Antique Power Assoc.
Outlaw Cruisers Car Club
Ferrum Elementary School
Heavenly Manna Food Bank
Tri-Area Community Health Center-Ferrum
Franklin County Public Safety
Franklin County Parks & Rec
Franklin County Sheriff’s Office
Ferrum Forward Community Group
Ferrum College Maintenance Department
Ferrum College Conferences & Events
Julia Larsen–Crocheting
The Pleasant Quilters–Quilting
Sam Siefers–Leather Belt Maker
Verily Simpkins & Family–Cornhusk Dolls
Ed & Maya Skopal–Herbal Products, Herb Lore
Al Stewart–Canes
Randy & Megan Winn–Chair Caning
William Wray–Crocheting
Michael Zimmerman--Dulcimer Luthier
Special Thanks
Ferrum College Housekeeping
Ferrum College Campus Police
Ferrum Lions Club
Ferrum Park
Virginia State Police
VDOT
Arrington Enterprises
Franklin County FFA
Rocky Mount Burger Company
Aztec Rentals
Roanoke Golf Carts
Stage Sound, Inc.
L3 Harris Technologies
Lowes of Rocky Mount
In Memory
Adam Alley
Dean Atkins
Terry Austin
Paul Bowling
Ruth Cook
Loretta Cooper
Nancy & Matt Cross
Caleb Bailey
Charlie Divers
Karl Edwards
Clover Forbes
Gess Gallien
Dianna Hernandez-Garcia
Abby Hudson
Jimmy Boyd • Kenny Law • Eddie Welcher
Austin Law
Henry Law
Cindy Mobley
Harry & Natalie Norris
Spook Parcell
Bobby Radford
Jean Redelman
David Rotenizer
Tim Tatum
Chad Thompson
Don Vineyard
Pam Vineyard
Betty Worley
Robert & Ruth Journell
2025 Event
Christmas at the 1800 Farm
Friday, December 19
2026 Events
Spring Seed Swap
Saturday, April 11
Moonshine Heritage Car Show and BBQ Competition
Saturday, April 25
May Day for Homeschoolers
Friday, May 1
YEAR-ROUND! Monday Night Music JAM
Did you know we are a major venue on The Crooked Road: Virginia’s Heritage Music Trail? And every Monday at 7PM you can join us for an evening of authentic old-time and bluegrass music.
Fincastle Company Encampment
Saturday, May 9
Blue Ridge Herb Lore Gathering
Saturday, July 18
Fall Seed Swap
Saturday, September 12
Blue Ridge Folklife Festival
Saturday, October 24
Christmas at the 1800 Farm
Friday, December 18
For More Information Visit www.blueridgeinstitute.org, follow @BlueRidgeInstituteandMuseum on Facebook, email bri@ferrum.edu, or call 540-365-4416.
Special Thanks to Our Sponsors
Ferrum Lions Club