The Central Railroad Festival will pull into historic downtown Central Saturday, April 23 with music, fun for all ages, and – of course – lots of trains! The festival begins at 10 a.m. and runs until 5 p.m., featuring entertainment, food, music and more than 25 arts and crafts vendors offering a variety of handmade items.
Live entertainment will include the SWU Jazz Ensemble, the D.W. Daniel High School Jazz Band and top 40 classics from The Flying Saucers, and more. At the Kids Stage, Greg “Buffalo” Barfield will have fun, interactive entertainment for the youngsters. The Central-Clemson Library, Arts Center of Clemson, Lowe’s and Southern Wesleyan University will offer more hands-on children’s activities.
There will be free entertainment for all ages. Also open for free tours will be the Central Railway Museum, which features a large HO-scale model railroad layout complete with cities, towns and features found in the region more than a half century ago. The museum also houses a Heritage Room, featuring classic model trains popular in the mid – 20th Century.
Central restaurants will be open on the day of the festival, offering options to satisfy varying tastes. Street vendors will offer festival favorites, including pizza, hot dogs, barbecue, nachos, corn dogs, hamburgers, sandwiches, funnel cakes, kettle corn, fried Oreos and more treats.
Admission to the festival is free and convenient parking is available.
Clemson Area Transit buses will run continuously, taking festivalgoers from parking areas. Shuttle service is available from Central Town Hall and Central area churches.
Central Area Business Council and the Clemson Area Chamber of Commerce are sponsors of The Central Railroad Festival. The Town of Central and the Central Railway Museum also support the festival.
Just prior to the festival will be the “Keep it Movin’” 5k race to benefit Central Elementary School’s Walk-Run program, which encourages students to walk or run before school on the school track. This year, more than 250 students are actively involved in the program. The race will start at 8:30 a.m. For details about the 5k Race, Contact Paige Bowers 397-1401 or email paigebowers@pickens.k12.sc.us.
As the Central Railroad Festival concludes, festivalgoers are invited to stick around for Mac Arnold and Plate Full O’ Blues, with special guest Bizness Suit and their own brand of “bluesy rock ‘n’ roll” – downtown as part of the Greater Clemson Music Festival. For details about the Greater Clemson Music Festival, visit clemsonmusicfest.org.
For festival details, call (864) 654-1200 or visit the Central Railroad Festival website at http://www.centralrrfestival.org.
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