JEFFERSON COUNTY, W.Va. – The Mountain Heritage Arts and Crafts Festival enters its 40th year this weekend.
The three-day festival in Jefferson County features some of the best artisans on the East Coast with about 180 participating, including 51 from West Virginia.
They will be displaying and selling their wares while demonstrating their crafts this Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Heather Morgan McIntyre says the event draws people from all over the world.
“One year we had somebody come from Australia,” she said. “But a lot from Washington, Baltimore, Pennsylvania, Ohio, other parts of West Virginia.”
Two years ago organizers changed the festival from a biannual event to just one each September.
McIntyre says it was a hard decision for organizers to make.
“We just felt that having on fall festival was good,” McIntyre said. “Especially with the economy and the way things are.”
Despite the change McIntyre says more than 12,000 visitors attended last year and that they anticipate just as many this year.
West Virginia First Lady Joanne Jaeger Tomblin opened the festival on Friday morning.
Proceeds from the festival help support Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce projects including donations to local charities.