Warrenton’s annual Fall Festival this past weekend drew thousands of people to downtown Warrenton Saturday for the city’s biggest event of the year.Brandie Walters, the city’s director of operations, said she believes this year’s festival had more attendees than any other, although a precise estimate isn’t available.“The attendees were steady all day, unlike the past events,” Walters commented. “I believe that the festival went very well this year. The weather was beautiful, which helped bring the people out.”The Fall Festival on Warrenton’s Main Street is the city’s largest annual event, featuring food and souvenir vendors, activities for kids and a car show with vehicles of many eras and styles.Fifty vendors had tents or trucks set up on Main Street during the Fall Festival, and there were just over 100 cars taking part in the car show, Walters said.The hallmarks of this year’s event were concert performances by Butch Wax and the Hollywoods last Saturday afternoon and Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in the evening. Spectators in folding chairs filled the streets to listen to the performances, with some getting up and dancing during the afternoon concert.A break from hot weather earlier in the week likely helped attendance. Rain on Friday brought temperatures down into the 70s over the weekend. That was a break from last year, when high temperatures in the 90s were attributed for keeping some people away.Walters said the face painting artist brought in for kids this year was a huge hit, and that organizers hope to bring in more next year.The city of Warrenton organizes the Fall Festival, which is sponsored by a special tourism tax fund. Throughout the day, city staff were visible in their neon-colored shirts helping with the event.“Our city staff did a great job keeping everything running smoothly. They put in a lot of hard work and it shows,” Walters said.City officials also thanked Meridian Waste, which was hired to take care of trash removal throughout the festival and help keep Main Street clean. This was the city’s first year of working with Meridian at the Fall Festival.

Visitors flooded downtown Warrenton during the annual Fall Festival Saturday, Sept. 22. The festival is Warrenton's biggest community event of the year, featuring vendors, live music, games and activities, and a car show. 

Record photo/Adam Rollins