The Highland County Maple Festival is an annual event in
Highland County, Virginia that celebrates the local
maple syrup
Maple syrup is a syrup made from the sap of maple trees. In cold climates, these trees store starch in their trunks and roots before winter; the starch is then converted to sugar that rises in the sap in late winter and early spring. Maple tree ...
industry. The event has been held since 1958 during the weekends of mid-March. The event attracts thousands of visitors to the county seat of
Monterey, Virginia
Monterey is a town in Highland County, Virginia, United States. The population was 147 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Highland County.
History
The selection of Monterey as the county seat of Highland County in 1847 was associated ...
, at the intersection of
US 250
U.S. Route 250 (US 250) is a route of the United States Numbered Highway System, and is a spur of U.S. Route 50. It currently runs for from Richmond, Virginia to Sandusky, Ohio. It passes through the states of Virginia, West Virginia, and Ohi ...
and
US 220
U.S. Route 220 (US 220) is a spur route of US 20. It runs in a north–south layout in the eastern United States, unlike its parent route as well as conventionally even-numbered highways which run east-west. US 220 extends for fr ...
, and the surrounding areas. Visitors to the event observe how maple syrup is produced and can sample a wide array of maple syrup related foods.
In 1999, The
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...
designated The Highland Maple Festival a "Local Legacy".
In 2014, the
Governor of Virginia
The governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia serves as the head of government of Virginia for a four-year term. The incumbent, Glenn Youngkin, was sworn in on January 15, 2022.
Oath of office
On inauguration day, the Governor-elect takes th ...
signed a bill into law designating Highland's Maple Festival as the "official maple festival of Virginia".
The festival was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, but returned to record crowds in 2022.
References
External links
Highland County Maple Festival official website
Highland County, Virginia
Festivals in Virginia
1958 establishments in Virginia
Recurring events established in 1958
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