CHESTERTOWN –– Longtime Tea Party Festival-goers from here and across the mid-Atlantic region brought enough brightness to town last weekend in the way of colorful umbrellas and memories of sunnier festivals past to keep the celebration lively despite the rainy weather.
Chestertown Mayor Meghan Efland said she enjoyed seeing everyone in their colorful raincoats throughout the May 22-24 weekend, making the town appear vibrant in contrast with the dreary weather.
“Even with the rain, there was still a really good turnout, and I feel like there were more locals out, so it was really fun catching up with a bunch of people,” Efland said.
Efland said one of her favorite moments from Saturday, May 23 was seeing her husband, Marc Quigley, perform with Generations Band Together on the main stage on High Street. The band, now in its second year, is a collaboration between local professional musicians and music students from Kent County High School.
Though the rain and cool temperatures kept some of the Colonial-themed parade participants at home, the festival went off as scheduled with events that included the tea-tossing reenactment on Saturday and the raft race on Sunday.
Andy Goddard, the festival’s programming chair and treasurer, said the Tea Party planning committee was very happy with attendance, especially for Sunday’s raft race.
About 1,000 people attended the weekend’s festivities, according to Chestertown Police Chief Ron Dixon. He said there were no reports of misbehavior.
Goddard estimated 10% to 15% of vendors were no-shows because of the weather.
Even so, a variety of food and drink options, craft vendors, educational opportunities in history and culture, and live music filled the town from Friday night through Sunday afternoon.
The festival began Friday, May 22 with fireworks set off [despite the rain] in Wilmer Park in celebration of the United States’ 250th anniversary and concluded after Sunday’s raft race.
Notable new events this year included Sumner Hall’s “Threadz of Truth” fashion show and legacy quilt unveiling in celebration of Black women’s creativity and contributions to U.S. history, held Saturday at the Garfield Center for the Arts.
Performances were put on throughout the weekend, ranging from a portrayal by actor Keith Henley of Hercules Posey, the enslaved head chef of George Washington, to a storytelling performance about the Colonial Tea Act.
Heidi Usilton, whose late father Sonny was one of the festival’s founders, embraced the weekend — inclement weather and all.
“I’m terribly sentimental about Tea Party because I’ve been experiencing it my whole life,” she said.
Usilton recalled as a child going to bed and listening through open windows to the sounds of adults who had gathered for Tea Party, laughing and talking outside late into the night.
Usilton said she also remembered taking “old-time photos” at a stand in town and eating lemons with peppermint sticks as part of early festival offerings.
Though there were no peppermint sticks this year, the festival had a range of food options from local nonprofits, as well as vendors who traveled to Chestertown to sell their wares. Many of them were dressed in Colonial attire.
