The Farmers Museums Month-Long Celebration of Autumn Event Stands-In for Harvest Festival This Fall

Celebration of Autumn incorporates many elements of Harvest Festival each day over a four-week period, minimizing crowds and increasing safety for visitors.

Celebration of Autumn
The Farmers’ Museum, Cooperstown, NY
September 18 - October 11, 2021 • 10:00 am–5:00 pm
Regular museum admission rates apply

COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. — The Farmers’ Museum’s month-long event, Celebration of Autumn, takes the place of Harvest Festival this fall. Harvest Festival will return in 2022. Celebration of Autumn incorporates many of the cherished elements of Harvest Festival and spreads it out over four-weeks, September 18-October 11. Each day, visitors will find activities relating to the fall season with other lively happenings planned for each weekend. Visit FarmersMuseum.org for a complete schedule and details.

“Our goal is to minimize crowds by offering a Harvest Festival-type experience every day of the week–increasing safety for visitors and staff,” said Dr. Paul S. D'Ambrosio, The Farmers’ Museum President and CEO. “Families can visit any day of the week and find similar activities without the crowds. It worked well last season and enhanced the museum experience for everyone who visited. We look forward to the return of our much loved and traditional Harvest Festival in 2022.” 

Visitors of all ages will find fun in the museum’s Country Village and Farmstead–experiencing what it was like to live in upstate New York in the mid-1800s. Hear the knowledgeable interpreters tell the story as you make your way through the museum’s bygone setting. See the grounds decorated for the season with cornstalks, pumpkins, and hay bales. Take horse drawn wagon rides through the Country Village on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from 1:00-3:00 p.m. (weather permitting). There’s also a hay bale maze and a corn maze for kids, a scarecrow contest, and The Empire State Carousel.

Each day, visitors will find demonstrations reflecting 19th-century trades. Interact with our printer, pharmacist, and broom maker. In the open air of the Country Village, the blacksmith shows off his talents outside the many historic buildings. At the Lippitt Farmstead, see the friendly farm animals in the Children’s Barnyard and farming demonstrations out in the fields. Learn how we smoke hams in our Smoke House. Children will enjoy additional agricultural activities that include corn shelling and grinding, and apple pressing. The museum’s new calf, Ginger, will parade around the village at various times throughout the day. 

See the famous Cardiff Giant in the Main Barn and then check out our exhibit, Brew: New York’s Craft Beer Revival. Central New York’s breweries and beer experts share their stories and process. This vibrant and engaging exhibition features objects, images, and text highlighting the history of New York State brewing, hops, and barley up to the present day.

Get a head-start on your holiday shopping in The Farmers’ Museum Store where you’ll find gifts for everyone on your list. Discover our expanded selection for babies.

Visit FarmersMuseum.org for a complete schedule of daily and weekend activities, plus current safety and masking guidelines. The museum will continue to follow guidance and make determinations on future events as they approach. The Farmers’ Museum is located at 5775 State Hwy 80, Cooperstown, N.Y. Hours: Open daily 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. through October 11. After Columbus Day (October 12-31): Tuesday–Sunday (Closed Mondays) 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

About The Farmers’ Museum

As one of the oldest rural life museums in the country, The Farmers’ Museum in Cooperstown, New York, provides visitors with a unique opportunity to experience 19th-century rural and village life first-hand through authentic demonstrations and interpretative exhibits. The museum, founded in 1943, comprises a Colonial Revival stone barn listed on the National Register for Historic Places, a recreated historic village circa 1845, the Empire State Carousel, and a working farmstead. Through its 19th-century village and farm, the museum preserves important examples of upstate New York architecture, early agricultural tools and equipment, and heritage livestock. The Farmers’ Museum’s outstanding collection of more than 23,000 items encompasses significant historic objects ranging from butter molds to carriages, and hand planes to plows. The museum also presents a broad range of interactive educational programs for school groups, families, and adults that explore and preserve the rich agricultural history of the region.