Kids & Family

Parade to Open Duluth Fall Festival

Real-life cowboy will be driving Wells Fargo stagecoach and horses in the parade that starts at 10 a.m. Saturday.

The Wells Fargo stagecoach will make a return appearance in this year’s Duluth Fall Festival parade, and a real-life cowboy will be driving the stage and its team of horses.

Alan Cartwright and his horses have been in many Hollywood westerns, and he was Clint Eastwood’s stunt double in one of the famous actor’s movies. Cartwright himself has been a member of the Screen Actors Guild for 36 years.

Cartwright’s wife is also a Wells Fargo stagecoach driver, and on any given weekend they have three teams of Wells Fargo stagecoaches and drivers in parades across the country. They operate out of their ranch in Fort Worth, TX.

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Wells Fargo Bank is sponsoring the appearance of the authentic stagecoach in the parade for the second year.

The 30th Anniversary Duluth Fall Festival opens with the parade at 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 29, and continues Sunday, Sept. 30, on the Duluth Town Green.

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Legendary music promoter Eddie Owen will ride in the parade as grand marshal. Tom Martin, chairman and CEO of Gwinnett Community Bank, the top sponsor for the festival since its inception, is the honorary marshal. Owen presents concerts at the Red Clay Theatre in Duluth.

The festival includes a carnival, parade, arts and crafts booths, food vendors, live entertainment, a silent auction, and a 5K road race. About 400 booths fill the Town Green and overflow onto nearby downtown streets during the festival.

An estimated 100,000 folks are expected to watch the parade, browse the booths, indulge in festival food and enjoy other activities over the two-day festival.

A Man’s Corner offers exhibits and demonstrations of interest to men. There are also inflatables and special activities for children.

Festival hours are 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday. Parking is limited, so there are several designated parking lots where a shuttle service will operate. A map of the parking lots and shuttle service schedule accompanies this article.

The parade of marching bands, floats and other entries will be followed by opening ceremonies. The Duluth High School Wildcat Cheerleaders and Elvis impersonator Mark Pitt will kick off the entertainment. Click here for a complete schedule of activities. A line-up of the entertainment appearing on the Duluth Festival Center Stage and in the Gazebo accompanies this article.

The Gold Medal Shows carnival opened Thursday and continues through Sunday across from Duluth City Hall. 

Discount coupons offering two-for-one carnival $20 armbands for unlimited rides Friday evening are available online. Click here to download your carnival coupon.

Remaining carnival hours are 6 to 10 p.m. Friday; 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.

The 5K road race through downtown Duluth starts at 8 a.m. Sunday. A map of the parade route accompanies this article.

The festival is put on entirely by 400 volunteers. A tabloid guide provides information about festival activities, a map of the layout and more. Be sure to pick up the guide. Festival visitors with questionscan ask volunteers, who will wearing cinnamon-colored 30th Anniversary Duluth Fall Festival T-shirts.

The anniversary T-shirts and other souvenirs will be for sale in the General Store at the festival.

A copy of the festival map accompanies this article.

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