The May 1st Fiddlers’ Jam at the Ely Stage Stop & Country Museum welcomes the return of the Ely Stage Stop Marketplace. This free, family friendly, fun-packed day can be enjoyed by all, young and old alike. The Marketplace, just outside the Ely barn, will feature local handcrafted goods and will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. As usual, musicians will jam from noon to 2 p.m. inside the barn.
Enjoy music, refreshments, and the opportunity to browse and purchase the wares of local craftsmen and artists. Food will be available for purchase on site from the Cactus Grill in Clearlake.
Items available at the marketplace will include jewelry, butcher blocks, pencil art, and bath and beauty products. There will be fantasy art, yard art, organic veggies, and honey and bee products. The Lake County Rockhounds will offer “gold panning for kids”.
Beverages and tasty treats will be provided by the docents in the barn. Take a ride up to the house on the hay wagon where you can enjoy the newest displays and learn about antique cookware.
Donations made during the fiddling benefit both the Ely Stage Stop, helping to fund the blacksmith shop, and the Old Time Fiddlers Association, District 10, who uses it to partially fund their scholarship programs.
On Saturday, May 21, the Ely Stage Stop & Country Museum will be hosting Lake County Fire Recovery Blues Benefit #2 for Hope Crisis Response Network to rebuild homes lost in the Valley Fire. Gates open at 2 pm, with blues music from local and Bay Area bands from 3 to 7 pm. For more info on Facebook: Lake County Fire Recovery Blues Benefits. Or call Spotlight On Productions: 707-278-7126.
Lake County Historical Society’s Ely Stage Stop & Country Museum is located at 9921 State Hwy 281 (Soda Bay Road) in Kelseyville, near Clearlake Riviera, just north of Hwy 29-Kit’s Corner. Current hours of operation are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday. Fiddlers’ Jams occur the first Sunday of every month from noon until 2 p.m. Living History events are held on the fourth Saturday of each month, again, from noon until 2 p.m.
Come join the Lake County Historical Society and become a volunteer at Ely or our sister museum, the Gibson Museum & Cultural Center in Middletown. Applications will be available during the day. Join the fun!
Visit www.elystagestop.org or www.lakecountyhistory.org, check out the stage stop on Facebook at www.facebook.com/elystagestop or call the museum at 707-533-9990
Visitors enjoying the fruits of last October’s Ely Marketplace. Contributed photo.