(File Photo) Artist Willow Peyton creates a still life of the Harmar Bridge Saturday during the Harmar Days festival.

The Historic Harmar Bridge Company will host its annual Harmar Days Festival from Friday through Sunday in the Harmar Village neighborhood of Marietta’s West Side.

The three-day community celebration and fundraiser features a variety of activities, including 10 food trucks, more than 25 craft vendors, live art demonstrations, a Saturday morning cruise-in and performances from 14 local bands. A kids zone will be located next to an adult beer garden, and cooling stations will be available throughout the weekend. Most attractions, including the cruise-in, music and kids zone, are free to the public.

This year’s festival embraces a Back to the Future theme to honor the 1985 founding of the Historic Harmar Bridge Company. A DeLorean, the car featured in the iconic film, will be on display all weekend.

The weekend concludes with the annual fundraising raffle on Sunday. Prizes include a 2023 Harley-Davidson motorcycle, a 2025 Bad Boy side-by-side vehicle, a 54-inch zero-turn mower, an e-bike package, a 30-inch Smokin Brothers pellet grill package and a Jackson kayak package. Raffle tickets are $60 each or $50 apiece when purchasing two or more in the same transaction. Tickets can be bought online at saveharmarbridge.com or in person during the festival. Winners do not need to be present to claim their prizes.

According to a press release from the Historic Harmar Bridge Company, Harmar Days dates back to the early 1980s when the B&O Railroad Company still owned the Harmar Bridge. It remains the primary fundraising event for the Historic Harmar Bridge Company, which uses the proceeds for bridge maintenance, rail car preservation, park improvements and grant applications.

In 2024, the company was awarded a $950,000 Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) grant from the Ohio Department of Transportation to begin construction on the bridge’s swingspan section as early as 2027.

The Harmar Days Schedule is as follows:

July 25

* 6 p.m. — Welcome

* 6:15 p.m. — Bag Pipe Ceremony

* 6:30 p.m. — 7:30 p.m. – Oyo

* 8 – 9:30 p.m. — Track 9

* 10 – 11 p.m. — Lex Bauman & Band

July 26

* 10 a.m — Welcome

* 10:30 – 11:30 a.m. — Past Prime Music

* 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. — Eleven live paintings followed by live auction

* 12 – 1 p.m. — High Schools that Rock

* 1 – 1:30 p.m. — Vocal Point – Marietta High School Choir

* 1:30 – 2:30 p.m. — Art demonstration: Stained glass

* 2 – 3 p.m. — The Mother Lovers

* 3 – 4 p.m. — Art demonstration: Ceramic painting

* 3:30 – 4:30 p.m. — Hannah & Levi Westfall

* 4:30 – 5:30 p.m. — Art demonstration: Woodblock carving

* 5 – 6:30 p.m. — Tanglewood Jam

* 7 – 8 p.m. — Red Sky Down

* 8:30 – 10 p.m. — Sour Mash String Band

July 27

* 12 p.m. — Welcome

* 12 – 1 p.m. — Pickin’ Country

* 1 – 2 p.m. — Art Demonstration: Felting

* 1:30 – 3 p.m. — Matt the Phatman & Sasha

* 3 – 4 p.m. — Art Demonstration: Pottery

* 3:30 – 5 p.m. — Joshua Lee & The Nice Dream

* 4:30 – 5:30 p.m. — Happy Hour, half price beer

* 5 p.m. — Harmar Days Festival raffle drawing