Franklin Farmers’ Market opens for their summer season on Sunday May 26th in the Village of Franklin on Institute Street. The market offers locals produce and products every Sunday from Memorial Day weekend to Columbus Day weekend from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Vendors from Franklin and surrounding towns will sell baked goods, beef, botanical bath & body products, fudge & cashew brittle, garlic & scapes, goat milk soap, gourmet marshmallows, hand-dyed silk scarves & handmade jewelry, herbs, household products, honey & beeswax products, fruits in season, hickory syrup, jams & jellies, lamb & sheepskin, maple syrup & candies, meat rubs & spice mixes, mushrooms, original photos and books, pork, preserves & relishes, fresh & smoked trout, a variety of vegetable, vegan desserts, and vegan soaps.
Returning vendors include:
- Chubby Bunny Confection
- Cordwood Acres Farm
- Empire Angus Farm
- Hare and Feather Farm
- Izzabon
- Maria’s Upstate Kitchen
- Molto Molto
- Oak Hill Farm
- Off-Road Maple
- Skytop Springs Fish Farm
- Soap By Nature
- Stupid Bunny Acres
- 357 Greenhouse
- Vêsucré
- Waste Warrior Artwork
- Wild View Farm
- Willow & Birch Apothecary
New this year are:
- Modern Homesteader
- Northstar Blueberry Farm
Vendors come from Andes, Franklin, Gilbertsville, Laurens, Oneonta, Sidney, Sidney Center, Treadwell, Walton, and West Oneonta. New vendors are welcomed.
Some vendors are semi-regular and some produce is seasonal. For current vendors and their offerings, consult the Facebook page of the market. Franklin Farmers’ Market accepts coupons from the Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program.
The market hosts fundraisers for community organizations free of charge. Opening day, FCS Clay Shooting Team will be grilling. Rotary will hold a bake sale the following Sunday, June 2. In addition to the occasional grilling, Ty Klinker brings her Taco-Ria food truck on June 23 and August 11.
On the lawn, tables and chairs are for snacking, conversation, or just relaxing. Beverages are sold at the cafe tent.
Local buskers will stop by to entertain including the perennially popular singer/songwriter Bill Steely with his son Wade who are playing on opening day. Local Seisiun is a regular favorite. Skinny Cow Singer/Songwriter Workshop returns in September. Musicians are invited to schedule with the market manager.
This is the 18th year of Franklin Farmers’ Market providing a venue for local artists, bakers, confectionaires, craftsmen, and farmers on the lawn of Chapel Hall, which was built in the 1850s as part of the Delaware Literary Institute. A half century later, this three-story post-and-beam Greek Revival became the temple of the Free and Accepted Masons, Lodge #562. For the last quarter century, it has housed the Franklin Stage Company, offering free professional theater. Their season begins on Friday July 5th with the play Trouble in Mind by Alice Childress.
The entire village of Franklin is on the National Historic Registry, and a self-guided walking tour is available. It is situated along State Highway 357, part of the historic Catskill/Susquehanna Turnpike, which in the early 1800s was a main route from the Hudson River landings at Catskill to the western frontier on the Susquehanna River.
Breakfasts and lunches are offered around the corner on Main Street at Seminera pizza, The Tulip and the Rose Café, and Yokel restaurant. Shops include Blue Farm Antiques & Letterpress Printing, Botanical Treasures, GaryGraham422, Good Taste Epicurean Market, Kabinett & Kammer, and Lava atelier.
Franklin Stage Company offers its shows on Sunday afternoons: in July, the play Trouble in Mind and Calpulli Mexican Dance Company; and in August, Yolanda Bush & Cool Water Collective and the play An Iliad.
On the last Sunday of each month, the newly renovated Franklin Railroad and Community Museum is open on Main Street, including after the opening market.
Market is a community effort: hosted by Franklin Stage Company and managed by Franklin Local.