Among products that can be found at the market are fresh eggs and farm products, baked goods (some that can be delivered to your home for free), flowers, crafts, local honey, garden produce, food vendors, art, teas, soaps and lotions made from farm products, and entertainment.
“We are 145 years old,” said Mary Donnell, the market’s manager. “I do believe there has not been a lull in it (since 1875). There has been some ebb and flow.”
Or is the market actually more than 200 years old? A 1999 column by Hamilton historian and former Journal-News editor Jim Blount said while the start date was uncertain, "Available evidence indicates that the tradition began before 1820, more than 179 years ago. It hasn't always been located around the courthouse, and it has often been a controversial topic."
“We’re on a downswing right now, because a lot of people don’t know we’re there,” Donnell said. She recently saw a Journal-News article from March 1977 that reported the market was in a slow period because people didn’t realize it was there.
“It is funny that we face the same issue regarding the community not realizing we are open,” she said.
Some 22 vendors have signed up to sell products, including 6-8 “floaters,” who will participate some weekends, but not others.
The market was supposed to open in mid-May, but after conversations with Hamilton Health Commissioner Kay Farrar, that was delayed because of concerns over spread of coronavirus, said Cynthia Stever of Hamilton, who helps with the farm market because she is a loyal customer.
“And the combination of a really cold, wet spring and the COVID-19 issues, we decided to delay and make sure we had everything in place before we opened up,” Stever said.
“We had a meeting last Saturday with the vendors, and a good share of the produce farmers didn’t even have their crops in the ground yet, because it’s been so wet,” Stever said. “So produce could be at a premium tomorrow.”
One occasional vendor, which will be selling late this month, is 80 Acres Farms, now headquartered in Hamilton, which grows products indoors at two locations in the city, and is expanding to three locations here, with another in Cincinnati.
People interested in learning more or becoming vendors can go to www.hamiltonshistoricfarmersmarket.com,
About the Author