Main Street Marshall Texas

October is about to break out with one of Marshall’s biggest days.

Mr. Don at the Third Grand Opening by Dennis O’Bryant

MARSHALL — Okay, so there’s no “Main Street” in Marshall, but 10 years ago, Bo Ellis had a vision for the revival of downtown Marshall that was to breathe new life into the once thriving courthouse square and Washington Street corridor. One outgrowth of the vision was the addition of Second Saturday where area vendors set up tents and tables to sell art, crafts, homemade foods and more. Background live music is constantly changing and events often coincide with classic car shows and other festivals.

October is about to break out with one of Marshall’s biggest days. Second Saturday, Oct. 13, Marshall will host the annual Fireant Festival with a full range of activities. At the same time, Jefferson will be hosting the Boo Run, a motorcycle enthusiasts gathering that raises funds to benefit the Percy R. Johnson Burn Foundation, a children’s burn unit. Charlie’s BackYard Bar in Marshall is a stop during the poker run for this worthy cause, so expect to see bikers out en masse.

During October, Breast Cancer Awareness will be featured with banners supporting Touch of Pink created by local artists and sponsored by area businesses and organizations, and with artist Claudia Lowery’s SURVIVOR Series, a display of original artworks of mixed media torsos displayed in downtown Marshall. “After I went through cancer, I wrote a poem that begins with ‘the breast is gone, but I’m still here…’ which began a progression of creations expressing the experience of dealing with breast cancer.”

Claudia is also the featured artist for the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau “Art In the Window” for all of October. Marshall will again encourage area artists to share their art at Art Walk the same weekend. Head to the Marshall Visual Art Center at 208 E. Burleson, about two blocks east of Washington Street, to see and purchase original art.

If you’d like to try your hand at creating art, there is also the Art Event led by Susan Pool at the Visual Art Center where you can create a canvas painted under leadership of the instructor trained in a grid method that makes painting available to anyone who has a few hours. For more information, call 903-926-2264. Local businesses like Cajun Tex, Central Perks, Under the Texas Sun, R&R Bakery, OS2, and Charlie’s BackYard Bar offer food and drink throughout the day.

Whew! Can all this excitement fit into one day? Of course! Just show up early on Saturday and make your way around the historic Harrison County Courthouse square, head up S. Washington over to Burleson and more, all within easy walking. In fact, make the rounds a few more times because there’s so much to see and do, you’ll need to do a double take!