The Festival of the Forks is held the third full weekend in September.
The purpose of the festival is “To celebrate the historic heritage and rich diversity of Albion Michigan.”
In 1966, the Chamber of Commerce in Albion decided to organize a community town hall meeting to discuss ways to bring the Chamber into a stronger leadership role in the community of Albion. After a lengthy discussion at the town hall meeting, a vote was taken on the various ideas that were shared. The winning idea was a “community festival” to celebrate Albion, its rich heritage, and broad ethnic diversity. The town hall meeting was adjourned with a sense of excitement.
Later the committee met and outlined the purpose of the festival, and set a goal that it would be a celebration of all the people of the Albion community, their ethnic diversity, and many contributions to the strength and character of Albion. Albion had several foundries operating at the time, and workers of many backgrounds made their homes in this community.
The group chose to have the event after school was back in session to provide broad participation by all elements of the community including Albion College students and faculty would also be back to school. At first, the Festival was held in October but was later changed to the third weekend of September because of the more pleasant weather. The name, “Festival of the Forks” was chosen to symbolize the founding of the community on the forks of the Kalamazoo River, and also the symbolism of unity and diversity. The Festival of the Forks has been held every year since 1967, drawing thousands of visitors to visit the community and enjoy the celebration. For many years the youth of Albion would enter a contest to help to design the Festival logo that was used to create buttons and t-shirts. In recent years, the Festival has been sponsored by area organizations such as Albion College, The Andersons, and Parks Drug Store. This support has helped the Festival to bring in many musical performers who help to enliven the day. There have also been reunions for Albion High School, street dances and cruise-ins in recent years.
There is usually a morning parade on the day of the Festival of the Forks, featuring area bands, grade school children, politicians, fire trucks and many other family favorites such as the Shriners with their little cars. After the parade, the vendors have booths on Superior Street, and in the Farmer’s Market area (Stoffer Plaza) between Superior Street and the Kalamazoo River. There is a variety of ethnic foods available, and live music from several venues throughout the day. There is usually an Art Show, and a used Book Sale at Albion District Library. There are many other events that are listed on the Festival of the Forks web site