Harmar Days Festival brings music, art, food to Marietta’s west side
Jeni Bauerbach, right, owner of Miss Jenni’s Bread Isle, gives a free sample to 3-year-old Oaklee Mulligan, decked out in royal regalia after recently being named Tiny Miss Belpre 2026, as mother Felishia Mulligan looks on Sunday at the Harmar Days Festival in Marietta. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
From left, Parkersburg residents Jennifer McIntyre, Joby Sims and Jocie Sims walk along Gilman Avenue Sunday afternoon at the Harmar Days Festival. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
From left, Marietta residents Yasmeen, Yousuf and Sami Alnadi pet Jacques the donkey from the Gab and the Goats Petting Zoo Sunday during the Harmar Days Festival. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Vendors set up along Gilman Avenue instead of Maple Street this year at the Harmar Days Festival. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
The Dadbods perform Sunday during the Harmar Days Festival. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Artwork for a fundraising auction is displayed Sunday afternoon on Gilman Avenue during the Harmar Days Festival. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Jeni Bauerbach, right, owner of Miss Jenni’s Bread Isle, gives a free sample to 3-year-old Oaklee Mulligan, decked out in royal regalia after recently being named Tiny Miss Belpre 2026, as mother Felishia Mulligan looks on Sunday at the Harmar Days Festival in Marietta. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
From left, Parkersburg residents Jennifer McIntyre, Joby Sims and Jocie Sims walk along Gilman Avenue Sunday afternoon at the Harmar Days Festival. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
From left, Marietta residents Yasmeen, Yousuf and Sami Alnadi pet Jacques the donkey from the Gab and the Goats Petting Zoo Sunday during the Harmar Days Festival. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Vendors set up along Gilman Avenue instead of Maple Street this year at the Harmar Days Festival. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
The Dadbods perform Sunday during the Harmar Days Festival. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Artwork for a fundraising auction is displayed Sunday afternoon on Gilman Avenue during the Harmar Days Festival. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
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MARIETTA - Parkersburg residents Jennifer McIntyre and Joby Sims were driving through Harmar Village Sunday when an obstacle presented an opportunity.
After playing miniature golf in Boaz with Sims' daughter Jocie, the trio ventured into Marietta's west side and found a portion of Gilman Street blocked off for the 2026 Harmar Days Festival, the largest fundraising event for the group working to the historic Harmar railroad bridge. They decided to explore.
"I like it," McIntyre said Sunday afternoon. "I like the music. It's got a lot of nice vendors."
She noticed a number of people with dogs on leashes and said if they'd known they would have brought theirs.
Whether it was by plan or happenstance, the crowds were good throughout the three-day event, said Natalie Bradley, executive director of the nonprofit Historic Harmar Bridge Company.
"I believe it's due to wonderful weather, brand new things that are happening this year" and the efforts of the event's marketing team and sponsors, she said. "The community has really come out in a big way to support us."
Bradley said this year's festival included an expanded beer garden with a quieter, shaded sitting area nearby. Black Diamond Brewery & Distillery also participated in the beer garden, offering three of its brews as premium selections alongside the beers traditionally served at the festival.
The Artist Alley was moved from Maple Street to Gilman Avenue, placing the vendors and artistic demonstrations closer to the festival's other activities. Bradley said the change was intended to make the event easier for visitors to navigate and keep its attractions more closely connected.
"It feels more cohesive, more connected," she said.
The festival also included a Saturday cruise-in along Gilman Avenue and Maple Street, with First City Records owner Aaron Whited serving as a DJ for the event. The Historic Harmar Bridge Company partnered with Marietta Makery's Greta Guimond to coordinate art demonstrations and a silent auction.
Lowell resident Jeni Bauerbach not only sold her bread from Miss Jeni's Bread Isle but displayed her Subaru Sambar in the car show and beside her booth.
"This is something that brings in the men, and the women buy the bread," she said with a laugh.
It was the first time she'd participated in the festival with her business.
"I think the weather has been lovely," she said. "I think the crowd has been pleasing, and I think it has been a profitable weekend for me."
Not all the vendors were local. Columbus author Chris Underwood set up nearly two years after coming to the area in conjunction with the LST 325 World War II landing ship. He was selling copies of a fictional book in his "The Cold Winter" series that featured the vessel. With a positive response then, "I knew that there would be a call for my new book," he said of the fourth in the series.
Underwood said he sold a number of books and also had folks talk to him about coming to speak to local book clubs.
"I especially like the history here," he said.
Artists created paintings - some beforehand, others during a scheduled demonstration - to place in a silent auction, with online viewing and bidding available for people who were unable to attend.
Organizers originally planned to offer a historical walking tour of Harmar Village, partnering with the Friends of Fort Harmar, but following concerns with the July heat and recent storms, the tour changed to a seated presentation beneath a shade tree. Bradley said participants would still be able to see three historic structures while learning about the neighborhood’s history.
Harmar Days is designed both as a community celebration and a fundraiser for efforts to restore access to the Harmar Bridge to connect the west and east sides of the city, Bradley said. She said she hoped the festival would give residents a chance to relax after a summer with heat waves, torrential downpours and plenty of other severe weather events.
"I hope (attendees) get some happiness and some joy from this weekend," she said. "It would just be nice for people to get out, enjoy the weather, enjoy each other, be entertained, eat and drink and just have a good time together."
Marietta residents Yousuf and Sami Alnadi were enjoying the children's area, which included inflatables and a petting zoo.Their mother Yasmeen said it brought back good memories as they adopted a cat from the petting zoo two years ago.
"It's just a nice vibe," she said of the event. "Everyone is usually so friendly."
Gwen Sour can be reached at gsour@newsandsentinel.com.
Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com.