Festival Food Court
The Scandinavian Folk Festival is presenting an array of Scandinavian Foods in one location in the Scandinavian Food Court.
Scandinavian food will be served by 3Cs catering offering a variety of traditional dishes. The Beer/Wine wagon and the Kaffe Stuga will also return. This will be a great place to gather with family and friends.
Food will be served on Saturday July 15 from 11 am to 7 pm and on Sunday July 16 from 11 am to 4 pm.
3Cs Food Truck
3Cs catering service will provide the traditional food this year.
The menu includes a variety plate, Swedish meatballs, rice pudding, rotmos, yellow pea soup, brown beans and some non Swedish favorites.
Beer & Wine
Enjoy Danish Carlsberg Beer or some local favorites or a selection of wines.
Kaffe Stuga
Take a fika (coffee break) with a Scandinavian "goodie aclising" or have a lingonberry drink, soda or water.
Norm’s Korv Burgers
The American Scandinavian Heritage Foundation will be serving Norm's world famous korvburgers. Norm Owen created the korvburger for the Scandinavian Folk Festival. A korv meat patty is served on a rye bun with a choice of lingonberries or other condiments.
Varm Korv
Enjoy a Swedish hot dog. Try it with some mashed potatoes on top.
Swedish Waffles
Order a waffle with lingonberries on it or your choice of a maple syrup
Franklin Honey
Snacks will be present with fresh popped carmel corn and other treats.
2023 Vendors
If you are interested in become a vendor with the Scandinavian Festival,
you can find the vendor application here.
VENDOR APPLICATION
Festival Gift Shop - The Festival's own gift shop will have an expanded loppis (flea market) of Swedish items, many items from Ecklof Bakery, Scandinavian Resources, and other local craftors sharing their products. The Festival is bringing back two vintage tee shirts and is offering a new design with sizes for men, women and children. Check out the raffle of gifts from vendors including a beautiful blue and yellow Swedish quilt. The Festival Gift Shop is being set up with 20 tables.
It's been a while, but returning this year is Marty Tuisk with Nordic Dreams from Baltimore, MD. He will have a variety of Scandinavian merchandise and jewelry.
Kate Kylander-Svensson with Uniquely Swedish from Lititz, PA, is returning. She will have Scandinavian linens, jewelry, books, gifts, housewares, etc.
Lily Ewing with Whichcraft? has been a regular, and she is returning - all the way from Denver, CO! She has a very wide variety of merchandise: hats, socks, embroidered clothes, jackets, blankets, books, candles, tomtes, moose, bags, etc.
European Sheepskins will be returning with natural sheepskin rugs and throws made from European heritage breeds.
Cara Staviski from High Bridge, New Jersey, will be there again with her many embroidered items and quilts.
SATURDAY JULY 15
Mayor Edward Sundquist
A History of Swedish American Mayors in Jamestown
Mr. Sundquist will be talking about the tradition of Swedish American politicians and public servants in Jamestown and their impact on city. Mayor Sundquist is the eleventh mayor of Jamestown with Scandinavian roots and his farfarfarfarfar, Charles G. Sundquist, emigrated from Göteborg in 1879 and was important in the early development of public lighting in Jamestown.
This presentation is scheduled for Saturday, July 15 at noon/12:00 PM after the Midsummer celebration.
Nancy Marie Brown
The Hidden Folk - How Iceland's Elves Can Save the Earth
Introduction by Arthur Pearson, Roger Tory Peterson Institute
Ms. Brown’s latest book discusses the culture of elves and environmentalism in Iceland. Her look at the phenomenon of Icelanders’ openness to alternative sensibilities is a compelling inquiry into the role of the environment in society.
Mr. Pearson will allude to connections in Peterson’s early bird guides in his introduction of the author and her work.
This presentation is scheduled for Saturday, July 15 1:00 PM
Nancy Marie Brown
The Far Traveler
Ms. Brown is the author of eight books about Iceland and the Viking Age. She is attracted to extremes: medieval literature and modern archaeology, myths, and facts. Her work asks, What have we overlooked? What have we assumed? What have we forgotten? Whose history must not be lost?
Ms. Brown learned to read Old Norse in graduate school and can read and speak some modern Icelandic as well. She blogs regularly on Viking and Icelandic topics and enjoys discussing all things Icelandic on Facebook.
In 2003, she moved from central Pennsylvania to a hundred-acre farm in northern Vermont. There, with her husband, the author Charles Fergus, she keeps a small herd of Icelandic horses and an Icelandic sheepdog. Since 2013, she has offered yearly history and horseback tours in collaboration with the company Hestaland. She is active in the international Icelandic horse community, being an editor of the U.S. breed magazine, The Icelandic Horse Quarterly.
Ms. Brown is a board member of the Leifur Eiriksson Foundation, which has given $3.75 million in scholarships to Icelandic and American graduate students since its founding in 2001.
Ms. Brown will be discussing her 2007 book, The Far Traveler. Icelandic sagas tell the story of Gudrid, a pioneering woman, who landed in the New World and lived there for three years, giving birth to a baby before sailing home. Ms. Brown’s book looks at the history revealed in the sagas and corroborated in the last decades by archaeology in Canada and Iceland. In 2001, a team of scientists discovered what may have been Gudrid's last house, buried under a hay field in Iceland, just where the sagas suggested it could be. The book has been recently made into a docudrama written and directed by Anna Dís Ólafsdóttir and coproduced by BBC Alba (Scotland).
This presentation is scheduled for Saturday, July 15 3:00 PM
Linda Littleton and Karen Hirshon
Folk Instruments
They are the band Simple Gifts and will be performing at the Scandinavian Folk Festival on stage at 3:30pm on Saturday July 15 and at 1pm on Sunday July 16.
They will discuss and play music on their 12 folk instruments, including the violin, mandolin, hammered dulcimer, recorders, banjo, guitar, bowed psaltery, baritone fiddle, shruti box, banjolin, guitjo, and doumbek.
Where else in New York State, but at the Scandinavian Folk Festival on this day, can one sit down and hear such an array of instruments?
Simple Gifts will also be teaching a “How to Play the Spoons” workshop earlier on Saturday at 2 PM and a “Learn a Tune” workshop on Saturday at 6 PM.
This presentation is scheduled for Saturday, July 15 5:00 PM.
John Everett Jones
Early Swedes in our area
Since 2014, the web site jamestownswedes.org has presented information and new findings about the early Swedish settlers in our area.
Over the course of this research, the stories of the early Scandinavian communities have revealed details that were left out of our local histories. Mr. Jones will present what he has learned and what we still don't know about our origin story.
This presentation is scheduled for Saturday, July 15 2:00 PM
Randall D. Gustafson & John Everett Jones
When Swedes ran the Circus
J. Augustus Jones and his brothers ran one of the most important circus operations in the United States in the early 1900s (second only to Ringling Bros). Tales about giraffes, lions and elephants in Chandlers Valley and North Warren seem unbelievable, but the railcar train circuses run by the Jones Bros. are an entirely larger than life story.
From grifters to the birth of the Blues to railroad engineering, this presentation will look at this unusual part of our local Scandinavian history.
This presentation is scheduled for Saturday, July 15 4:00 PM
SUNDAY JULY 16
Janet Wahlberg and John Everett Jones
A Master Class in No Cost Research of your Scandinavian ancestors.
This class will present resources available for genealogical research that don’t require expensive subscription fees. We will be discussing research in bouppteckning reports, military records, historical maps, etc. This class will focus on Swedish sources, but we will also discuss research in Danish and Norwegian archives. We will be talking about resources available at our local cultural institutions, including libraries, First Lutheran Church, and Fenton History Museum.
This presentation is scheduled for Sunday, July 16 at noon/12:00 PM.
Christin Curran
Nålebinding (aka Viking knitting) design and technique
Ms. Curran is a textile artist, musician, and writer who has presented her nålbindning work at the 2021 Nordic Knitting Conference in Seattle. She has co-authored a pattern design for nålbindning, an ancient, single-needle knitting technique, with Sámi ethnologist, Erika Nordvall Falck. Ms. Curran will discuss the history and design of this knitting craft and then demonstrate the techniques for this single-needle handwork.
This presentation is scheduled for Sunday, July 16 at 1:00 PM. Yarn and handmade nålbindning needles will be available at the demonstration.
Paul Leone and Greg Peterson
Mayor Samuel A. Carlson
Paul Leone will present stories from the autobiography of Samuel A. Carlson.
Carlson was the second Swedish American mayor of Jamestown and directed the city for 24 years – the longest serving in the city’s history. Important advances in hospitals, public water, sewage, and streets were made during his tenure, but he is especially known for making Jamestown independent in the production of its own electricity. The Jamestown power plant is named in his honor. Carlson was a Republican but tried to move the city to a non-party electoral system, an effort that was reversed after his tenure. There are interesting stories about his leading a delegation to Europe. All of the citizens and businesses of this city continue to benefit from his being our Mayor.
Samuel Augustus Carlson was the son of the immigrants from Höreda (Vetlanda), Jönköping who arrived in Jamestown in 1867, a year before his birth.
This presentation is scheduled for Sunday, July 16 at 2:00 PM.
Michele Gerring
My Second Great-Grandfather, Frans Hugo Harald Svan (1857-1925): Worldwide Sailor, Polyglot, and Son of a Swedish Steamship Captain
Dr. Gerring will talk about the interesting life of Frans Hugo Harald Svahn, who became Frank H. Swan in the US. He was born in 1857, the son of a steamship captain, in Stockholm. He went to sea as a teenager, and after several years of life as a sailor, he settled in the US, and raised eleven children in Point Chautauqua and Dewittville. Stories about his origins, his maritime career, and his life in Chautauqua County will be presented.
This talk is scheduled for Sunday, July 16 at 3:00 PM.
Norseman Viking Ship
The Norseman Viking Ship will arrive in Jamestown on Thursday, July 13. On Friday, July 14, weather permitting, the ship will enter the Chadakoin River at McCrea Point boat landing at 10 AM and will be docked there until noon where families can board the ship and talk with the crew. It will then sail up the Chadakoin River to the lower portion of Chautauqua Lake. Additional stops are being arranged.
During the Festival on Saturday, July 15, from 10 AM to 8 PM and on Sunday, July 16 from 10 AM to 4 PM, the ship will be on display on Lafayette Street next to the Northwest Arena. The crew, dressed in their Viking clothing, will be present to give tours of the ship and answer questions about the Vikings.
Built in 1992, the Norseman offers people a story of Viking culture, Leif Erikson, and his visit to North America in about the year 1000, and the ships that made them famous.
The crew members appear in full Viking costume, share their interests in Viking culture, their Scandinavian heritage and practice their sailing and rowing skills.
The Norseman has appeared in tallships events primarily on the East Coast of the US. They also sailed in Sweden in 1998. In 2000, the Norseman sailed along Labrador’s south coast then across to L’anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland with other Viking ships from Sweden, Norway and Canada to celebrate the Millennium of Leif Erikson’s voyage to North America. In 2003, the Norseman was shipped over to Saint Petersburg, Russia to participate in a gathering of Vikings in “Rurik – 2003” to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the founding of that city by Czar Peter the Great. In 1995, the Norseman was filmed for 5 productions shown on the History Channel.
The Norseman is sponsored by Leif Erikson Viking Ship, Inc., which is a 501(c)3 organization located near Philadelphia, PA. with a mission to promote a realistic historical image of Viking people as merchants, navigators, ship builders, artists, explorers and warriors. The ship is 40 feet long and the sail measures 17 feet wide and 17.5 feet tall.
The Norseman is sponsored this year by the City of Jamestown. We are thankful for a donation from the Fund for Downtown Programing and the Jametown Local Development Corporation.
Ice Bumper Cars
The Festival has rented the entre second ice rink and will be offering rides on Ice Bumper Cars.
The cost for Festival participants is only $3 for a 10 minute ride. The rides are available only on Saturday July 15 from 2 PM to 6 PM. Sign up for your time slot at the Arena. Kids must be at least three years old to ride with an adult; six years old and 42” tall to drive. Riders must wear flat, closed-toe shoes. (Flip flops, sandals, and heeled shoes are not permitted.) Maximum weight is 300 pounds. Driving an ice bumper car is easy! Every car is surrounded by a large PVC air tube that provides protection for the car frame and absorbs the impact of collisions for the rider who is comfortably seated in a molded fiberglass shell. This is a unique and fun opportunity for children as well as adults.
Curling
You have seen on the Winter Olympics that the Nordic countries are frontrunners in the ice sport of Curling. The Festival is giving you the chance to see what it is all about and to try your luck with Curling. For Festival participants, one can schedule a 30 minute curling session for only $3 per person. Gather some friends, form some teams or try it on your own. Curling sessions will only be available on Saturday July 15 from 2 PM to 5 PM. Sign up for your time slot at the Arena. No special equipment or skates are required. Players must wear flat, closed-toe shoes. (No flip flops, sandals or healed shoes are permitted.) Children must be in at least fourth grade. The stones are heavy to lift so it requires everyone to be aware of your surroundings. If you belong to a curling league or want to consider joining one next Fall, this is a great opportunity to practice and get the feel of the game.
A curling exhibition game between two local teams will occur on Saturday July 15 at 5 PM. This is your chance to observe a real game up close and personal. There is no additional charge for this.
Midsummer Celebration
This year's Festival will include a traditional Swedish Midsummer Saturday, July 15, 2023. After the long dark days and nights of winter, Swedes celebrate the long days of summer with dancing, music, a midsummer pole and seasonal foods such as the first potatoes and strawberries. This holiday is the most popular celebration next to Christmas.
The Festival's Midsummer will begin in the Jamestown Public Market near the corner of W. Third and Cherry Streets. Beginning at 10 AM, the 22 foot pole will be decorated with greens and flowers. We encouage the community to bring flowers from their gardens and fields and put them on the Pole. Perhaps in memory of ancestors. There will also be an opporunity to make a midsummer head wreath. When the pole is ready, about 11 AM, the Festival Folk Dances in their colorful ethnic regional costumes and the Festival musicians will process the pole along W. Third Street to the Northwest Arena. It will be erected on the corner of Lafayette and W. Third Streets. Ring dances will occur on Lafayette St. between 2nd and 3rd. Instructions will be proviced for each dance.This is the community's opportunity to celebrate midsummer just like our ancesters.
This Midsummer celebraion is free and completely open to the public. Behold Scandinavia!
Genealogy Research
The genealogy research program from Fenton History Center will exhibit at the Festival with their Scandinavian research tools and assist visitors with researching their ancestors.
KUBB Tournament
KUBB is the Viking game now played with wooden equipment instead of bones. On Saturday July 15 beginning at 4 pm, there will be a single elimination tournament. Form your own team of two or more players or come as a single. Who is the champion this year?
(Hint - The person who won a few times in the past, is out of town that weekend.)
Workshops
A series of workshops are being offered. There is no additional charge or need for registration.
- Learn-a-Tune workshop is where you bring in your own instrument of any type and sit down with professional musicians to learn a Scandinavian tune or two. Simple Gifts will offer their workshop on Sunday, July 16 at 3 PM. Smorgasbandet will offer their workshop on Saturday July 15 at 5 PM.
- A “How to Play the Spoons” workshop will be held on Saturday July 15 at 12 PM. Some of us remember old time Swedes keeping rhythm with spoons. Learn how to hold as well as effectively make the sound. Don’t be surprised if the group is requested to accompany Simple Gifts for a selection at their 3:30 PM concert.
- For children there will be story time on both Saturday and Sunday. Children are encouraged to participate while Kathy Petersen reads from some Swedish children’s books. This is for children of all ages and will occur at 4 PM on Saturday, July 15 and 12 Noon on Sunday, July 16 .
Displays/Demonstrations
- Take your picture standing next to King Carl Gustaf XVI
- Browse through the exhibit of Swedish painter Carl Larsson’s prints
- Learn to play the Viking game Hnefatafl - Saturday 1-3, Sunday 12-4
- Observe artisans apply their skills
- Chip Carving – Sat and Sun 12 - 4
- Swedish (Huck) Weaving – Sat 12 - 4
- Painting – Rosemaling – Sat. and Sun 12 - 4
- Spinning Sat and Sun
- Swept work wood craftsman – Sat and Sun
- KUBB Tournament – Saturday July 15, 4 PM
- Children/family activity area led by Amelia Pyle (Sat and Sun)
- Meet with Staff from the Fenton History Center about genealogy research. Look up your family on Swedish records. Bring the details you already have.
