Thousands Attend 32nd Annual Melrose Victorian Fair

Warm weather and a plethora of activities drew several thousand people to downtown Melrose for the 32nd annual Victorian Fair Sunday afternoon.

Organized, run and in support of the Melrose Chamber of Commerce, nearly 200 vendors and artists' tents lined Main Street and Foster Street. Demonstrantions, raffles, rides, games and a host of other activities kept visitors entertained during the event, which ran from 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Summing up the reaction of many vendors and coordinators, Julie Crowley, owner of , who had a popular both in the middle of Main Street, said: “It's been excellent and the weather held out. There have been some little lulls, but it keeps picking right back up.”

Cindy Constantino, who led a raffle for the that was set up across the street from another popular attraction, a pie toss to benefit , said: “It's been busy, better than other years.”

The excitement wasn't just aimed at beneficiaries either. Going through the crowd Patch bumped into people from Danvers, Stoneham, Westborough, Wakefield and other nearby communities. Brookline resident Mary Gaughan provided some insight into what draws so many people to one of Melrose's premier family events when she said, “I came this year to see a friend sell her jewelry and will be coming back next year.”

Between buildings, other hot spots were set up like a host of rides and carnival games, firefighters giving tours of their emergency vehicles and equipment and a National Guard recruiting station complete with a one-of-a-kind motorcycle and a military Humvee. Added to this, live demos were done by several area dance studios and a karate display was handled by Bill Adam's Uechi Karate School.

Another angle to the fair was the politics being discussed. The AARP's booth was handing out information about the differences between President Obama and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Melrosian Allen Swartz was dressed as Abe Lincoln and was offering his stance on the need to repeal the Supreme Court's Citizen's United ruling that corporations have the same free speech rights as people. Finally, local politics were also tossed into the mix by another Melrose resident, Lori Glennon, who was handing out flyers concerning what she saw as unfair leash laws surrounding the Mt. Hood dog ban that took place mid-way through last month.

Summing up much of the sentiments of both vendors and patrons, Melrose resident Scott Drago, of Lunch Box Concessions and South Pole Ice Cream, said: “It's just great exposure toward the community.” Beren Weil, longtime participant of the fair and first-time jewelry vendor, concurred, adding: “It's just fun being involved with your community.”

Be sure and check out Patch's of the 32nd Annual Victorian Fair on Monday. For those of you who missed the fair, on Sunday, September 16 at noon, Melrose Massachusetts Television will be playing their re-cap of the fair on channel 3 for Comcast customers and channel 39 for Verizon customers.