Despite a rainy Friday and very cool Saturday morning, people eventually flocked out to the 9th annual Pioneer Days in Birchdale this past weekend.
Friday evening saw the place humming, as volunteers were setting up tents for class reunions and early exhibitors were bringing their tractors, antique cars and gas engines, and working on getting them ready to display for the weekend.
The festivities got going at 7 a.m. Saturday with a flapjack breakfast put on by the Birchdale men’s slow-pitch softball team and soon after that, crafters and exhibitors began doing their thing. Chub Hancock from out west had brought over a trailer full of antique one-cylinder gas engines, which is only a small showing of his collection of a hundred such treasures, and soon a crowd gathered around him as he got them all puttering away.
Sofia Olesen and Judith Nelson started off the music part of the weekend with a flurry of traditional fiddle tunes, which was occasionally punctuated by a loud bang from the black-powder shooting range close by. Kerry Meyers had set up the range to showcase the pioneer way of supplementing the early settlers’ diets.
By about 11 a.m., the weather finally began to clear and the organizers were very happy to see a long line of antique and classic cars from the International Falls and Fort Frances car club pull in and line up for the visitors to enjoy. Pat Harris from the car club said that everyone had been up early and gotten their cars ready to bring out to Birchdale. But the misting rain had kept the cars in their garages, and when they finally decided to make the run out to Birchdale they had been glad to drive into the sunshine. Saturday afternoon saw a flurry of activities such as lumber-planeing, blacksmithing, sewing with a foot-powered machine and the always-popular square dancing. On Sunday, after the noon parade, exhibitors loaded their equipment, bands packed up, drawings for the door prizes were held and the show was officially over as Casey Williams from Littlefork turned his truck onto the highway and headed home with his four tractors.
Everyone, including all the people from around the state who attended the 1959 and 1969 school reunions, to Maggert from Big Falls, who brought up his perfectly restored Rumney Oil-pull tractor, to the Decades Later band from Alexandria and all the crafters reported that they had a great time and are looking forward to the event’s 10th year on July 17 and 18 in 2010.
Event organizers reported that about 500 people attended Pioneer Days this year, which was great for the Community Building, since all the funds raised over the weekend are used to operate the building and the adjoining softball field.
This is the biggest event that is held at the building each year and between Pioneer Days and the organization’s other big fundraiser — the North American Sturgeon Championship — the community is able to raise enough money keep operating this special place where people can get together to celebrate and have a great time.
