Labor Day Weekend in Vernon, Indiana

Back in the 1960's when the Vernon Labor Day Celebration began, the people who founded and organized it had a vision. They turned Labor Day weekend into the days of the Pioneers, with horse-drawn carriage rides, real full-blooded Indians walking amongst the crowd in traditional Indian attire, authentic Indian tepees set up on the Commons along the banks of the Muscatatuck River, entertainment on the front Court House lawn, and men and women dressed in Pioneer attire. I still have the long, ruffled Pioneer dress my mother sewed for me the first year the festival began.

Streets were blocked off for vendors of all types to sell their wares, and a big fish-fry tent was strategically located beside highways 3 & 7 on the street in front of the Court House. Everyone passing on State Roads 3 & 7 could see the tent and smell the aroma of the frying fish. Back then, Vernon was the place to go in Indiana on Labor Day weekend. The highway was bumper-to-bumper vehicles from early in the morning until late in the afternoon each day of the celebration. Everyone had a good time in the festival-like atmosphere, and vender's left happy because they did well.

After a few years, everything changed. Carriage rides ceased, Indians no longer came, Pioneer attire became regular attire, entertainment stopped, and the big fish fry tent vanished. The theme was gone, and the Vernon Labor Day Celebration became nothing more than an antique and flea market, mostly antiques. Still, it continued to draw quite a crowd until several years ago, when crowds began to dwindle and vendors began to leave.

Meanwhile, a mile or two up highways 3 & 7 in North Vernon, residents started setting up yard sales. Over the years, the sales have expanded and can now be found along streets adjoining the highway, called State Street in the city, with many stragglers here and there on other streets and in other parts of the city. Additionally, vendors with other types of goods began to rent spaces along State Street, and what began as a few yard sales grew into a massive bargain-hunter's paradise. Today, almost any bargain a person could want can be found somewhere in the maize of wares in North Vernon on Labor Day weekend, and people flock to the area to find them.

While the event at Vernon is not dead, it is certainly dying. With only a few booths offering other wares, it has mainly become a market place for antiques. Festival-type food booths are abundant, and in all fairness, one of the best and biggest yard sales in the area is located next to the County Office Building in Vernon. Antiques, food booths, and the biggest and best yard sale in the area, isn't enough to keep the crowds coming, though, and each year the crowd gets smaller and vendors leave.

For those seeking antiques, visiting Vernon on Labor Day weekend could be worthwhile. Bargain hunters could benefit by going to the sales at North Vernon. Anyone wanting a fun, festival-type event with entertainment and fun things to do will simply need to look elsewhere.