Car shows, festivals and the first carnival: Things to do in May in Franklin County

As summer nears, May is a big month for car shows, family festivals, beer fests, chicken barbecues, benefit golf tournaments and other kinds of events. The first carnival of the year in Franklin County even starts at the end of the month.

Check out these and other events in May.

Spring Fest

10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 4

Main Street Park, Waynesboro

More than 150 retail vendors, 20-plus food trucks, beer and spirits, live music and kids' activities will be part of this event.

Main Street in Waynesboro will be closed for the festivities.

Musicians set to perform include Elijah Myers, Will Wright, The Mack Berry Band, Alex Brackett and Jonah Kendell.

Cold Spring Hollow Distillery, Hazard's Distillery, Michaux Brewing Co. and Rough Edges Brewing will also be there.

To see the full list of retail vendors and food trucks, check out the Facebook event page.

Spring Fest 2024 is hosted by Mason-Dixon Creations, Greater Waynesboro Chamber of Commerce and Mainstreet Waynesboro.

Other spring festivals for families:

DutchFest: May 3-5, Shalom Christian Academy, Chambersburg. Food, live auctions, family activities; shalomdutchfest.com.

Mercersburg Spring Fest: 9-4 p.m. May 11, downtown Mercersburg; retail and food vendors, other activities.

Greencastle Spring Market Day: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 18.

Youth Festival: 1-5 p.m. Sunday, May 19, Pine Hill Recreation Area, Waynesboro; natureandcultureinstitute.org.

Community Fun Fest: 3-6 p.m. May 19, Amvets pavilion, Chambersburg. Music from Cumberland Valley School of Music students and Shippensburg Blaskapelle. Buy tickets -- $25 for adults, $15 for ages 13-20, $10 for kids 6-12 -- at cvsmusic.charityproud.org; sponsorship opportunities available.

Blues, Brews and BBQ

4-8 p.m. Saturday, May 4

Capitol Theatre's back lot, Chambersburg

A fundraiser for the historic theater, this event features live music, beer and wine, and barbecue and other food.

Jo Blues Band will kick off the event, followed by headliner Skyla Burrell Band.

B&B BBQ and CM Pig Out will serve up dishes from their food trucks.

Non-alcoholic beverages will also be available, in addition to beer and wine.

Buy tickets -- $20 for adults and $10 for kids 10 and younger -- at capitoltheatreonline.org. IDs are required.

Capitol Theatre will host a similar event, 21+ Backlot Blast on July 13. Tickets are on sale now.

Other beer festivals:

Shippensburg Beer and Wine Festival: 1-5 p.m. Saturday, May 4, Shippensburg Fairgrounds.

Boro Brew Fest: 12-4 p.m. Saturday, May 7, Grove-Bowersox Funeral Home parking lot.

Fandom Fest

9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 11

Chambers Fort Park and Rosedale parking lot, off North Main Street in Chambersburg

Organizers call all "heroes, royals, merfolk, fae, travelers of stars, adventurers, busters of ghosts, gamers, catchers of pocket monsters, brick builders, steampunks, and fans of every other kind!"

There will be 25-plus fandom-based vendors, mermaids, opportunities to meet characters, brick-building contests, fandom vehicles, a scavenger hunt, LARP demonstrations and more.

Downtown Business Council of Chambersburg is hosting the event.

Learn more at the Facebook event page.

Cruzin' for K9s memorial ride and show

Saturday, May 18

Event at M&S Harley Davidson, Chambersburg

This event kicks off with a motorcycle ride. The convoy will depart Chambersburg Career Magnet School at 8 a.m., then arrive at M&S Harley Davidson at 9 a.m.

There will be a show of the top 25 motorcycles, food and craft vendors and raffles until 5 p.m. K9 demonstrations, meets and greets with K9 officers and live music are among the planned activities.

Admission is $20 per vehicle (includes the memorial ride), plus $10 to enter the show.

Other auto shows:

Marching in the Mountains Car, Truck and Bike Show: Saturday, May 4 (registration 8 a.m. to noon, awards at 2 p.m.; rain date, May 11), Fort Loudon Community Center. Benefits James Buchanan High School Band Boosters.

First Fire Engine and Truck Show: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, May 5, Chambersburg Volunteer Firemen's Museum

Milky Way Cruise-in: 12-4 p.m. Sunday, May 5, Milky Way Restaurant, Fort Loudon. Spectators should park on the other side of the road.

Conococheague FFA Car, Truck and Tractor Show: 10 a..m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 18 (registration open at 9; $10 per entry), James Buchanan High School, Mercersburg. Plus, food trucks, kids' activities, plant sale and more. Advance registration: [email protected].

Fayetteville carnival

Thursday, May 30 to Saturday, June 8

Fayetteville Volunteer Fire Department

Don't miss Franklin County's first carnival of the year. There will be rides, games, music, food and more; details will be shared on the Facebook event page.

This article originally appeared on Chambersburg Public Opinion: Carnival, spring festivals, live music: Franklin County May events