For more than 30 years, the annual Olde Tyme Apple Festival in Versailles has seen visitors enjoy its numerous fun-filled activities and contests, delicious apple-inspired and old-fashioned food, and true small town event aura.
With events through Sunday, most activities for the festival will take place throughout Saturday in downtown Versailles. But first, guests can see the opening night of the 2015 Apple Festival Musical, "Mary Poppins," at 7 p.m. today in The Royal Theatre.
Then pre-festival activities start Friday with an apple pie baking contest at 5:30-7:30 p.m., "Mary Poppins" at The Royal Theatre, a car cruise and Sock Hop starting at 6:30 p.m. at B&B Drive-In, the Baby Dumplins Apple Tarts and Apple Dumplin' and Darlin' contests at the First Baptist Church, and with the crowning of the festival King and Queen at the Morgan County Courthouse.
Versailles' Olde Tyme Apple Festival officially kicks off at 6:30 a.m. Saturday with a Pancake Breakfast at the Westminster Presbyterian Church. The 5K and Super Senior 5-K runs at 7 a.m., as well as the Two-Mile Walk at 7:15 a.m. and Half-Mile Kids Fun Run at 8:15 a.m. at the Versailles High School.
The Fun Zone for Kids will be open at 9 a.m. along North Monroe Street. Also at 9 a.m., approximately 300 vendors will open in downtown Versailles for Saturday's festival, remaining open until 5 p.m.
The parade begins at 10 a.m. and travels from Brown Road to Highway 52, then down Newton Street to the Courthouse Square and then south on Fisher Street, west on Jasper Street, and south on Monroe and DeKalb streets.
Apple-themed events include an apple sculpture contest for artists and an Apple Pie Baking Contest Auction where festival-goers can buy some of the award-winning contest pies. Other events and activities include the Car Show at Versailles City Park, a Tractor and Engine display along Newton Street, a Mason's Dinner from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. at 308 N. Walnut St. and the popular Fiddler's Contest at 1 p.m. at the Royal Theatre.
Festival attendees can choose their own festival finale at 7 p.m. - either a Compact Figure 8 Race at 7 p.m. at the Morgan County Fairgrounds or an encore showing of "Mary Poppins" at 7 p.m.
A post-festival golf tournament is also scheduled for noon Sunday at Rolling Hills Country Club, located at the junction of Missouri 52 and Missouri 5. If festival-goers did not get a chance to see "Mary Poppins," they can still see one of three performances starting at 7 p.m. Oct. 8-10 at the Royal Theatre.
The first Olde Tyme Apple Festival at Versailles was in 1980 with a modest attendance of about 50 vendors. Since then, the festival has blossomed to become one of the largest and most well-attended one-day family festivals in Missouri.
For more information about the festival, contact the Versailles Chamber of Commerce at 573-378-4401 or check VersaillesChamber.com.