The Wilson Whirligig Festival had a couple of firsts this year. For the first time in the event's history, it rained. But it didn't rain much, and nearly all of that occurred Saturday morning. The bigger issue was cold — it was the coldest Whirligig Festival yet. When the rain ended Saturday morning, the wind picked up, giving whirligigs a little rotation.
Every previous Whirligig Festival, if my memory serves me, was greeted by bright blue skies and cool but comfortable temperatures, just right for strolling down Nash Street and enjoying the exhibits. The cool temperatures had to hurt sales of ice cream and cool drinks, but the hot cider from the Wilson Woman's Club really hit the spot. The festival attracted the usual array of crafts and food vendors, many of them back from previous years. Nonprofits offered information from a number of booths, and the Wilson County Public Library bookmobile sold used books at a brisk pace. Strolling troubadours added to the festive atmosphere. Because the festival fell four days after the election, political parties were absent this year.
Despite the chill that dampened attendance a bit, the Whirligig Festival showed once again that Wilson is onto something with this gig. Most any town can hold a barbecue festival, spring festival, tobacco festival, bird festival, dogwood festival or collard festival, but few have a connection with and an international audience for whirligigs, the whimsical creations of internationally acclaimed folk artist Vollis Simpson. Vollis had a booth at the festival, and Downtown Development was promoting the Whirligig Park, which will collect, restore and erect the whirligigs now on Simpson's farm, saving them for future generations to enjoy.
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