Bring on the charm
Crowds flock to Cave Spring’s annual arts festival
The Cave Spring Arts Festival has grown exponentially in its 43 years of existence, but the Sunday crowd proved one thing hasn’t changed — the town is charming.
“We love it,” said Bruce Schumaker of Jacksonville, Alabama, as he and Rebecca Kelley left the festival grounds at Rolater Park, passed families swimming in the spring-fed creek and headed across the street to the downtown district. “We’re going to stay all day.”
The couple had come over before, on a mini-road trip, and Schumaker said he was so charmed that he followed Cave Spring on Facebook.
“When I saw this, we decided it was time to drive up again,” he said.
Ken Landers, a downtown merchant and former Cave Spring city councilman, said the three-day festival drew thousands from all around the region.
Next up, after the June 30 fireworks and July 4 parade, is the Cave Spring Motorcycle Rally & Music Festival on July 27 and 28.
“For a small town of 800 people or so, we do a lot,” Landers said. “It brings people out.”
The Smith family, originally from Cedartown, can attest to the draw. Tommy and Reena Smith came to the arts festival from Haralson County and unexpectedly ran into Tommy’s sister Cathy Smith Hines, visiting from California.
“Look who’s here!” whooped Reena as she and Cathy did a double-take, then hugged.
The weekend slice of Americana included Wayne Phillips of Wayne’s Trains giving rides around the park to the namesake cave that houses the city’s natural water supply. And Jeremy Smith, a Silver Creek chainsaw artist who does his totemic carvings in his Aragon shop, at art shows and outside his customers’ homes.
“I actually got booked for a kid’s birthday party last month, so that’s another one I can cross off my list,” Smith said with a smile.
Crowds of people wandered the grounds, chatting with the vendors and picking out hand-made arts and crafts, then moving on to the food trucks, the inflatables and a shady spot under the trees.
Scott Brown was sharing cups of boiled peanuts with his daughter Jessica Grimes and young grandchildren Memphis — with green-dyed hair — and twins Olivia and Peyton Grimes, who had green-tinged mouths from sno-cones.
Jaclyn Johnston and James Mathis, there with four of their seven children, bought a large wooden plaque with the initial “M” surrounded by antlers to celebrate their upcoming wedding.
“My name will be Mathis on Saturday,” Jaclyn said as James beamed.
In addition to photographs, paintings, quilted dishcloths and colorful tutus, the booths featured unique items such as the batterypowered “found-item” outdoor lamps made by Debbie and Jeff Bein of Pell City, Alabama.
“We use vases, cans, mosaics ... anything we think will throw a pretty shadow or light,” Debbie Bein said.
In another section, Tyler Wilson was carving animal silhouettes with a scroll saw for kids with the adults who browsed the Pop’s Shop booth belonging to his grandfather Fred Wilson. His grandmother, Judy Wilson, said the scrollwork is a hobby Fred took up when he retired.
“We do a couple of shows a year, and it gives us a chance to travel,” the Gwinnett County woman said.
This year’s festival featured 104 artisans, according to Mike Ragland, a Cave Spring author and historian with a table displaying his books. Ragland said organizers cut off vendor registration early and outright rejected about 65 applications.
“They were getting duplicates, and they’re not going to take anything commercial,” Ragland said. “I like that: ‘You don’t make it, we don’t want it.’”
It’s all part of the Cave Spring charm.