French Heritage Festival Is This Weekend
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The city of Ste. Genevieve and the Foundation for Restoration of Ste. Genevieve set aside the second weekend in June each year to recognize and celebrate the many unique cultural aspects of Ste. Genevieve’s French heritage. The 26th French Heritage Festival is scheduled for June 10-11 with several activity centers located throughout the historic district.
Beginning at 9:30 a.m., in the walled garden of the Jacques Guibourd historic tour home on Fourth Street, early arrivals can meet and get selfies with “Queen Marie Antoinette and King Louis XIV” of France, enjoy tea and cake, and listen to costumed story tellers. The royal couple will lead their audience across the street to the Church for the festival’s Opening Ceremony, at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday on the back steps of the Church of Ste. Genevieve. The public is then invited to join in a grand promenade, or walking parade, down the streets of the town.
“All throughout the day, people are encouraged to join in the fun,” explained Skip Weiler, president of the Foundation for Restoration of Ste. Genevieve. “The French Heritage Festival is a way for our town to celebrate the unique traditions, history, architecture, and music of Ste. Genevieve’s French and Creole heritage in Missouri and in the Mississippi River Valley. “
While each of the local historic sites and museums will be open for tours and have planned their own unique activities, the festival organizers have planned sponsored programs in three primary event areas this year. Area one will be a ‘Street Fair’ located on Merchant Street next to the Guibourd house from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. featuring demonstrations of lace-making, doll making, wool spinning, draw knife demo for woodworking, fun French phrases, make and take potpourri sachets, Skip Weiler’s gumbo along with corn bread and creme brûlée, and mountain dulcimer music by Belinda Emily Link until 3:30 p.m. Visitors are encouraged to take a tour of the house built for Jacques Guibourd in 1806, including the massive attic where the Norman trusses and vertical logs are highlighted.
Nature lovers will enjoy a chance to enter and explore five private gardens, beautifully maintained and in close proximity to the festival, open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on June 10. For early risers on Sunday, the Audubon’s Nature Walk will meet at 7 a.m. at the River Refuge informational kiosk. Take Stormy Crawford Way east to the parking lot and the kiosk at the base of the levee.
The second activity area will be centered at Lion’s Club Park on Market Street. The Lions will begin serving festival food at 10:30 a.m., featuring beignets with plenty of powdered sugar, Cajun Pork Burgers or a Catfish Plate with fries/coleslaw. Also available are hotdogs, chips, popcorn, soda and water and a beer and wine stand featuring many made in Missouri products. Artist Autumn Walters will have watercolors on display and Tom Hooper from ASL Pewter will demonstrate metal coin striking in the park.
Traditional fiddle player Dennis Stroughmatt, a festival favorite for over twenty years, will perform a wide variety of Creole music in two free musical performances in Lion’s Club Park on Saturday. Stroughmatt will lead The Creole Stomp band from 11:30 am to 1:30 p.m., and later that afternoon he will lead L’Esprit Creole in performing French songs that date back to the 1700’s in the Mississippi River valley region and originated in France and French Canada. “If you’ve heard Dennis and his music before, you know you won’t be able to keep your feet still when he plays,” said festival co-chair Sandra Cabot, “and if this is your first time to experience it, you are in for a real treat!”
Explore the nearby Bolduc and Felix Valle historic sites for guided tours, open houses, children’s activities, Milice reenactors and more skill demonstrations throughout the day. Find out more about programs offered by the National Park Service at the Welcome Center.
North Main Street will host the third activity area, beginning with World Famous Scooter Burgers set up at 11 am at Main Street Park on the corner of Main and Jefferson. Serenading the Scooter Burgers will be guitarist and vocalist Ben Peters from 11 am to 2 pm. Music, Art, Love will host two guest artists at 137 North Main during the day. “One of the new items we added to the festival year will be a street fair for North Main,” said festival co-chair Cathy Grusling. Beginning at 5:30 pm, a portion of North Main Street will be closed to through traffic to create a street fair between Jefferson and Washington streets. Look for art displays, sidewalk specials offered by the shops, adult beverages and a special festival menu hosted by Oliver’s, tables set up along the street, and more live music by local favorite Chad Steven Stafford on the street from 6 pm to 9 pm.
Other than some of the historic sites’ admission fees, the activities throughout the French Heritage Festival are free and open to the public. Sponsored by the Foundation for Restoration of Ste. Genevieve. Learn more at VisitSteGen.com and HistoricSteGen.org.