2010 Bridgeport Fall Festival -- Ghosts of Bridgeport
Herb Lindberg
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Part 1 of 3

A Ghosts of Bridgeport Pageant returned to this year's Fall Festival in the form of a haunted house on the old wooden covered bridge, where the spirits of Bridgeport's historical characters were called back to tell some of their stories to entranced audiences of parents, children, and general visitors.

Children painted more than one hundred pumpkins and took them home with them. Children also had their faces painted with Halloween pictures.  Music filled the air from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., as Bite the Bullet played on a stage area  next to the Historic Barn, and Rick Toles (Alkali) and the String Sisters (Emily Roberts Brockway on violin and Laxi Tyrrell on cello) wandered the Bridgeport area playing their unique music.

Also as in past festivals, Mountain Man (and Woman) campers told stories and answered questions near their tents set up the night before in the grassy area next to the Visitor Center.  They also explained the workings of their muzzle loading long rifles, which were used in their hunting and trapping livelihood.  Meanwhile, others in the Mountain Man group took children and adults on wagon rides along the Virginia Turnpike leading to the covered bridge., 

Food booths were bustling with about 500 visitors, serving hot dogs, chili, ice cream and other delights for the tummy. June from June's Deli was here with a full array of cakes, pie, cookies and other treats beautifully displayed in her booth.

All the normal park activities were also in full swing.  Docents greeted visitors at the information table, answered questions about gold-rush era wagons in the barn, told the history and features of the covered bridge, demonstrated blacksmith techniques, and helped children of all ages pan for gold and bottle their treasure to take home with them.

This pictorial story of the event is divided into three pages, roughly in the chronological order in which they were taken:

     Page 1 View from Pleasant Valley Road, pumpkin ring toss, Bridgeport and Halloween Bingo, ghost and spooky spider making, yarn spinning, String Sisters (this page)
     Page 2 Ghosts of Bridgeport called back to haunted bridge, Halloween costumes, yarn spinning, pumpkin painting, hot dog barbeque 
     Page 3 Costumes, gold panning, Kneebone gas station, balloon clown, Penn Valley Chamber of Commerce, The Blues Go Birding, Mountain Man encampment, String Sisters at Visitor Center, raffle, June's, bag toss into donkey

Early arriving visitors viewed from Pleasant Valley Road


Happy in their Halloween costumes


Ring toss is always popular.


Looks like a good toss.


It was!  Look closely and you'll see six pumpkins he circled.


At the next table is Bingo, run by rangers from Malakoff Diggin's -- Bridgeport Bingo, and...


... Halloween Bingo.


Typical action during a game


Bingo!  Girl selects her prize.


Children also made ghosts, and...


... spooky spiders, more inspirations by volunteer Vickie Macdonald.


Close by is yarn spinning.


Near the covered bridge were the String Sisters, Laxi Tyrrell on cello and Emily Roberts Brockway on violin.


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