Saturday, May 30th
10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Jeremiah Lee Mansion Gardens
WALK-INS WELCOME. PRE-REGISTRATION NOT REQUIRED.
Learn more marbleheadmuseum.org/craftfair/
Members: $10 per Person / $25 max per Family
Non-Members: $15 per Person / $40 max per Family
Ages 3 & Under: FREE
Step back into the sights, sounds, and even the smells of colonial New England at the 3rd Annual Colonial Craft Fair, hosted by Marblehead Museum in the beautiful gardens of the Jeremiah Lee Mansion. This lively outdoor event brings history to life as skilled artisans and historic interpreters demonstrate the trades and traditions that shaped Marblehead and the wider region. Stroll the grounds, meet members of Glover’s Marblehead Regiment, and see 18th-century recipes come to life with a culinary historian—offering a vivid glimpse into everyday life in early New England.
Throughout the day, visitors can watch a remarkable range of traditional crafts in action. Meet a mantuamaker demonstrating the art of 18th-century dressmaking, a cabinetmaker shaping fine furniture by hand, and a leatherworker practicing techniques once essential to daily life and maritime communities. Learn how candles were made with a traditional chandler, explore the tools and skills of a master gunsmith, and see a master tinsmith at work. Discover how rope was formed for shipboard use, how flax was processed into fiber, and how basketry and tape-loom weaving supported households and trade alike. You can also observe the delicate process of copperplate engraving and printing—an essential craft in the world of early books and images.
It’s a day of hands-on history, learning, and discovery for visitors of all ages—an opportunity to experience the ingenuity, resourcefulness, and artistry that built early New England, and to meet the dedicated craftspeople who keep these remarkable traditions alive today.
Photo Credit: Katie Ring Photography