Hometown Harvest Festival
Celebrate the abundance of the fall season at Sainte-Marie among the Hurons! Experience the beauty of the harvest with take-home crafts, live music, and family-friendly activities. Take part in our new kids’ harvest contests for a chance to win great prizes! Meet our friendly heritage animals. Support talented artisans at our vendor market, featuring only hand-made items. And more!
Dates and times:
- Saturday, October 12 to Monday, October 14
- 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Tickets:
- $15 a person, taxes included – children 5 and under are free
- no registration required
- free entry for Indigenous persons with valid ID
- a support person accompanying a paying customer with disabilities gets in for free
- free entry to members of the Canadian Armed Forces with valid ID
- season passes are valid for this event
Family-friendly fun
- shop an extensive artisan market: More than 40 vendors are included in this craft show that features only local and hand-made, one-of-a-kind products! From delicious pastries to hand-thrown pottery, there will be something for everyone.
- meet our friendly animals: Get to know our heritage cows, pigs and chickens during a tour of our barns offered by Agricultural Specialist Madelaine MacDonald at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
- harvest competitions: Check out oddly-shaped vegetables, huge sunflower heads, tiny squashes and other submissions to our harvest and art contests! OR drop off your own submissions for a chance to win prizes worth $120! Details below.
- taste Three Sisters soup: Try a yummy fall harvest soup in our cookhouse, made with corn, beans and squash: the Three Sisters.
- make candles: Use the traditional dip method to make candles wax candles to take home!
- play games: See how fast you can throw a ball with a lacrosse stick with our speed net. Try corn darts, a First Nations twist on your favourite pub game. Or beat your loved ones at a friendly game of giant checkers or giant tic tac toe.
- listen to live music: Russ Clayton will be performing every hour on the historic site. Join him for some engaging and family-friendly musical fun!
- roast bannock: Roast our homemade bannock on a stick over a fire and dip it in syrup for a warm and gooey treat.
- try delicious teas: Warm up by sipping delicious teas in the Indigenous area, including a tea made with fresh mint from our gardens.
- complete a family scavenger hunt: Ready to scour our outdoor historic site for interesting objects? Have fun exploring the past!
- watch historical demonstrations: See how First Nations and French residents of 17th-century Wendake would have lit fires from scratch at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Then play some traditional First Nations games at noon and 2:30 p.m.
Apply as an artisan or food vendor!
Join a roster of talented vendors selling one-of-a-kind products at this well-established artisan market. Apply for your spot today!
Thanksgiving meal at Restaurant Sainte-Marie:
Enjoy delicious turkey with all the traditional trimmings at Restaurant Sainte-Marie! Available from noon to 8p.m. on October 12, 13 and 14! Reservations are highly recommended. Call (705) 321-2912.
Image gallery:
Please click each image below to see a larger version.
Hometown Harvest fall contests!
Sainte-Marie among the Hurons is happy to announce that we are hosting Hometown Harvest themed contests this year! Start preparing your contest submissions now to earn cool prizes for your whole family.
Vegetable growing contest for kids from junior kindergarten to grade 3
What can you grow in your garden this season?
Most unusual vegetable
We’re looking for some funky looking veggies.
Largest sunflower head
Bring us the biggest sunflower head you can grow.
Smallest squash
We want to find the smallest squash in Simcoe.
Vegetable growing contests for kids grades 4 to 6
Put your growing skills to the test for a chance to win tickets to fun fall events!
Most unusual vegetable
Find the strangest looking veggies your garden can produce.
Best looking squash
Show us your most magnificent squash.
Longest ear of corn
Bring us the longest ear of corn you can find.
Harvest art contests
Show off your art skills with our new Hometown Harvest art contests. Take out your supplies and get creative!
Paper plate pumpkin
Kids from junior kindergarten to grade 3 may participate in this competition. Use those painting skills and a paper plate to create a fun pumpkin carving craft!
Canoe or wigwam made
from seeds
Contest open to kids from grades 4 to 6. Using any seeds of your choice, craft a canoe or wigwam using glue and an 8.5 X11 sheet of paper. Get creative!
Kids contest prizes
Category prizes
The winner of each category will receive four tickets to Pumpkinferno at Discovery Harbour and four tickets to First Light at Sainte-Marie! A total value of $120.
Overall prize
The judging panel will also select 1 overall winner to receive four season passes, offering unlimited admission to both attractions including most events.
Submission guidelines
All entries must be dropped off at Sainte-Marie by 5 p.m. on October 10, 2024.
Submissions will be judged by our agricultural specialist and our friendly staff panel. All participants will be able to collect their contest submissions as of October 14, 2024.
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Please be advised that with the exception of service animals, pets are not allowed on the historic site for this event.
- Season pass holders get free admission. Indigenous people are eligible for free admission with valid ID.
- Restaurant Sainte-Marie is now open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. serving delicious food from Sainte-Marie’s gorgeous patio.
- Please note this tour takes place mostly outdoors and, visitors should plan to dress accordingly for weather, terrain and bugs.
- Most of the vendors will not have the ability to accept credit or debit card payments and will only accept cash payments. There is no ATM on site.
- Sainte-Marie among the Hurons is a mask-friendly environment. Read our COVID-19 policy.
- Smoking or vaping (including marijuana) is not permitted on the property.
16164 Highway 12 East, Midland, ON, L4R 4K8
Parking Info
There is ample parking for visitors including those with RVs and buses. Please park in the parking lot provided and make your way to the admissions entrance. We also have bike racks available for cyclists coming from the Tay Trail.
Need more info?
Please contact us at hhp@ontario.ca or (705) 526-7838 if you have any questions.
Ontario’s first European Community, Sainte-Marie among the Hurons was the headquarters for the French Jesuit Mission to the Huron-Wendat people. In 1639, the Jesuits, along with French lay workers, began construction of a fenced community that included barracks, a church, workshops, residences, and a sheltered area for Indigenous visitors. This community was abandoned and burned down in 1649.
After extensive archaeological and historical research, Sainte-Marie among the Hurons is now recreated on its original site, where the mission’s compelling story is brought to life with costumed historical interpreters, demonstrations and hands-on activities.
Located near Midland, on the Wye River, this world-renowned reconstruction offers visitors a unique opportunity to see the earliest Canadian pioneer life through self-guided visits, group tours, interactive education programs, and special events. Complete your experience by exploring our interpretive museum and themed gift shop.
