KEARNEYSVILLE — Visitors planning to attend the 43rd annual Mountain Heritage Arts and Crafts Festival will venture to a new location this year. The event, which has regularly been held at Sam Michael’s Park, has found a new home at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds.

The festival brings vendors offering a variety of mediums including jewelry, glasswork, rugs, stonework, photography and more. A significant number of the artisans return to the well-attended festival year after year.

The new location at the fairgrounds will give vendors the opportunity to set up indoors, which can be a great benefit should the weather turn bad. Vendors will also be set up outside under tents, as they previously had done at Sam Michael’s Park.

Approximately 200 juried artists and craftspeople from 24 states will demonstrate their work. There will be children’s activities at a designated tent, where the youth can make a craft, get their face painted and take part in a scavenger hunt.

In addition to crafters, food vendors and artisans, the festival will offer live music throughout the three-day event. Bands entertaining this year will include Circa Blue, the Hillbilly Gypsies, festival favorite Patent Pending, Jim Hurst and Valerie Smith and Liberty Pike.

As festival-goers enjoy the music and shopping for unique gifts, they can also taste some West Virginia craft beers and hard cider, a new addition to go along with the West Virginia wines.

Profits from the festival go back into the community in the form of donations made by the Chamber of Commerce. Recipient organizations vary each year, however some remain consistent. The Jefferson County 4-H Leaders Association, the Boy Scouts, fire and rescue companies around the county and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Reserves are all annual recipients. Each of these entities provide support throughout the festivals from security to ticket takers.

The fall festival is set for Sept. 28, 29 and 30. Admission costs are $7 for adults and $4 for children 6-17. Parking, arts/crafts demonstrations, wine tasting, live bluegrass music and children’s crafts are included. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day.

All pets and alcoholic beverages are prohibited. Also prohibited are firearms of any kind. For more information, call 304-725-2055.