About The Shaker Forest Festival

The Shaker Forest Festival is an annual event held each year in September at the beautiful Seneca Creek State Park in Gaithersburg, MD. The festival was born in honor of the Shaker people, a devout, inventive and industrious group who invented and meticulously constructed many essentials still in use today. Among them are the flat broom, clothespin, washing machine, circular saw, screw propeller, wire sieve, gardening tools, packaged seeds for planting and of course, the exquisitely crafted Shaker furniture and nesting boxes for which they've become known.

The festival features a multitude of talented artists and craftsmen known for their high standards and work ethic, qualities rarely found in today's modern world. Coming from all around the country these folks bring their dreams, their goodwill and the opportunity for you to purchase what often can be found nowhere else on Earth.

At the festival one can view demonstrations of craftwork techniques; the assembly and construction often using the same tools and technology the Shakers invented. For example, watch a blacksmith shape metal with fire and anvil, a potter at his wheel, a furniture maker plane and join hardwood. Try your hand at Scherenschnitte, the German art of paper cutting. Observe a soap maker create pure bars of soap like the Shakers used to while at the same time enjoying your glass of Old Fashioned Sarsaparilla or a bag of Bavarian Roasted Nuts. Other unique foods and beverages are also available.

Join us for two weekends: September 8-9 and 15-16 at the beautiful and scenic Seneca Creek State Park in Gaithersburg, MD. Amenities include:

- free parking and shuttle service
- accessible parking and pathways
- package holding and pickup for large items
- new artists each weekend
- prize giveaways and drawings every 15 minutes
- on site EMT and first aid station
- full color festival program
- security provided by festival staff and the Boy Scouts of America

Note: Seneca Creek State Park does not allow pets.