Welshfest 2020 coming to Rockmart March 21
Spring is inching closer and so is the return of the annual Rockmart Heritage Day and WelshFest event. On March 21, from 11 a.m. through 6 p.m., Polk locals are welcome to visit downtown Rockmart for a celebration of the culture and people that hail from the Country of Wales.
The event is a chance to celebrate the heritage of Rockmart, Northwest Georgia, and the dense collection of Wales ancestry that can be traced from the area.
Popular events like Welly Wanging, the Men in Kilts competition, and many more other activities are slated to return, but the festival’s Ginger Smith also recently confirmed new events such as the presence of trained Welsh Corgis that will be performing throughout the day.
Smith also confirmed there will be a veteran’s memorial ceremony, the Black Jar Honey Contest, the Honey Cake Contest, the presence of a bagpipes player, photoops with an old-time covered wagon used by the Mennonites, children’s activities with the Rockmart Art Center,
and more.
“Heritage Hall in the slate building will have several history and cultural societies, including the Polk County History Museum, the Polk County Historical Society, the Aragon Historical Society, the Rockmart History Museum, the Paulding County Historical Society, and area genealogists. There will be a wool spinner in that building. All this is new,” Smith said.
Smith also shared a list of Welsh family last names, so those interested in seeing if they might have some Welsh ancestry of their own are urged to stop by. Last names include the likes of Bowen, Davies, Davis, Edwards, Ellis, Evans, Floyd, Griffith, Harris, Hopkins, Howell, Hughes, James, Jenkins, Jones, Lewis, Lloyd, Merrick, Morgan, Morris, Owen, Phillips, Pierce, Powell, Price, Pritchard, Pugh, Reece, Roberts, Thomas, Vaugh, Walters, William, Wynn, and more.
The event is still in the works, so changes to the activities, vendor line-up, and more could change as time goes on. More information about the event can be found at RockmartWelshFest.com.