Huntersville Traditions Day

October 2 began cold and frosty, but by the time we'd made it to Huntersville and were set-up in the backyard of Connie Carr's historic home, the sun had begun to penetrate the wintry fog. Soon a beautiful autumn day emerged in all its crisp, blue-skied splendor.

From 1821 to 1891, Huntersville was the center of activity in Pocahontas County, and the original county seat. Several of the town's original structures, or portions of them, including the jail, the schoolhouse, the site of the courthouse, the Huntersville and Civil War cemeteries, and the Presbyterian and Methodist churches remain to this day.

Huntersville's charming village atmosphere provides the perfect setting for 19th century crafts, cooking, music, and wagon rides. Ladies strolled through the market in period dresses and hats as the sounds of fiddle and guitar and the smells of wood smoke, cornbread and apple butter filled the air. It all combined to create not just a window into the past, but an open doorway through which we stepped and entered another time.

Nestled up against the red clapboard home of a talkative goose named Lucy, Brightside offered our full line of herbal teas, heirloom apple preparations, and our abundant crop of Rutgers, Celebrity, and Lemon Boy tomatoes, which sold out early in the day. All the products sold well, with loose teas, old-fashioned tea strainers, and our new Honey Apple Jelly--made with organic wildflower honey and heirloom Wolf River apples--emerging as the most popular products of the day.

Traditions Day was a wonderful venue for Brightside and a perfect fit with our authentic, artisanal approach to wildcrafted foods. We're already looking forward to next year!