How far we've come in nine amazing years. As we prepare for our tenth year and the biggest
celebration ever, take a look back and see unchanged online records from
every year of our festival, taking us from our humble beginnings to where we our now.

2009
Sept. 19th & 20th

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9th Annual Niagara Celtic Heritage Festival & Highland Games
How blessed we were with such amazing weather! Warm, sunny days are as rare in the UK
as they are in Western New York, yet there we were in the middle of a set of them. The end
result (as anyone who attended can attest) was a record number of guests. Everyone working
at the festival had a wonderful time seeing old friends from years' past and meeting many
new ones. The talk filling the air, about our guests from volunteers, included the wonderful
costumes, cute dogs, amazing visitor participation and of course, the wonderful members of
Ohio's Clan Claus.

At the end of the weekend, the members of the Celtic Society celebrated the festival's great success
after hours, weeks and months of hard work. We hope that everyone who visited us agrees that
the weekend was fun, amazing, surprising and exciting. Now, as we prepare for our tenth year, we
cannot wait to out-do ourselves once more. And of course we look forward to seeing old and new
friends all over again!

8th Annual Niagara Celtic Heritage Festival & Highland Games
Once every Autumn, in the wee hours of the morning, a place known as Krull Park is transformed
into a village, complete with a market, town commons, tavern, farm, theater and more. Tourists who journey here are enchanted by the villagers, who love to share their music, food, dancing, wares and history to everyone they meet. It is a wonderful time shared by all who gather.

And shortly after, as the sun begins to set the village disappears, leaving no trace of its existence.
The park is once again a park, and everyone returns home, with little more than their wonderful
memories. But they all know the village will return again, just as it does every year. So until that
time we all wait, looking forward to coming together and celebrating the great Celtic heritage we
all share. Certainly you can wonder then...is the festival our own Brigadoon?

The members of the Niagara Celtic Heritage Society thank all who participated and joined us for our
eighth year of celebrating Celtic culture at our festival. We are looking forward to celebrating with
everyone again in 2009 and every year beyond. See you in Autumn when our village returns!

New Additions : 1st Annual Baking Competition An expanded Town Commons, including reenactors, a blacksmith and a spinner Festival Shuttle around Olcott	Highland Games 2008 Schedule Competitions included: Caber Pole Toss, Sheaf Toss, Stone Throw, 56 lb weight for height, 28 lb. & 56 lb. weight for distance
	Saturday Pro Masters Men Am Masters Men Women's Demo	Sunday Open/ Pro Men Men's Amateur Women's Open

Food Court Billy's Beef Blooming Onion from Schwartz Top's Foods Festival Beer Tent Flyway Farm Maple Products Franklin Honey & Apples The inFamous Welsh Cookie Company Lake Effect Ice Cream LAOH Tea Tent Mrs. Ribs Ms. Goodies Sandee's Bakery Tammy Jo's Cafe The Middleport Basket Factory Visions of Sugar Plums	The Main Stage Saturday: Poor Ould Goat TreeMan Storytelling Boughton Hill Band The Dustmen McMahon School of Irish Dance Saturday Evening Ceilidh: Opened by: Penny Whiskey McMahon School of Irish Dance Headlined by: Emish Sunday: Merry Mischief McCarthy School of Irish Dance Audrey Watkins Highland Dance Academy Lochside Celtic Celtic Spirit Pipe Band O'Sullivan Academy of Irish Dance Clann Na Cara Irish Dancers
Children's Area Arts & Crafts Castle Ring Toss Dragon Ball W Finn MacCool's Horseshoe Toss Miniature Golf Mini Highland Games Training Field Potato Relay Pot O' Gold Toss St. Andrew's Fishing Hole Tables for coloring Welsh Leek Toss	Pipe Bands 96th Highlanders Pipes & Drums of Jamestown Caledonian Pipes & Drums of Buffalo Celtic Spirit Pipe Band, Inc. Gordon Highlanders' Pipe Band MacKenzie Highlanders' Pipes and Drums of Niagara Falls Pipes and Drums of Lindsay, from Ontario, Canada
The Marketplace Backroads Creations The Blarney Stone The Celtic Cottage Celtic Crossroads Celtic Treasures Charlie's Dragon Egg Productions Enchanted Shire Essential Being Holistic Studio Gray Dog Toys & Treats Henna Rising IlluminaTae Irish Marketplace Jan Ferries' Handcrafted Baskets Kelly's Country Store The King's Purse Leather and Lace Lords of the Seas LXR Travel, Inc. Marcia's Jewelry Metal Lynx Creations Niagara Celtic Souvenirs Orleans Dulcimers Peggy's Gifts PJ Knives & Supplies Red Headed Girl Seasonal Creations Serendipity Creations Soldier Boy Miniatures Under The Mystical Moon Valley of Field Herbals	Town Commons 13th Century Reenactors Black Face Scottish Sheep and other animals from Gow Farm Celtic Music Theory Workshops Chain Maile Demonstrations by Metal Lynx Dog Demonstrations of Flyball & Agility by Greggs Kim Fuller, Spinner Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians (LAOH) Livonia Smithery, Blacksmith MacFarlane's Company Niagara Celtic Heritage Society Pony Rides from Lakeview Animal Sanctuary Shetland Sheep from Whispering Pines Sterling Invaders Study of Historical & Fantasy Times (SHFT) Traveling Minstrels from Penny Whiskey Treeman Storytelling
Clan Row Clan Blair Clan Forsythe Clan Graham Clan Grant Clan Gunn Clan Henderson The House of Crawford Clan Johnston Clan MacFarlane Clan Morrison Rochester Scottish Heritage Society Clan Stewart Clan Turnbull Clan Wallace	Celtic Arts Centre & Stage Cairde Genealogy Department of the Lewiston Library Hobson's Choice Jeanna Treat Kindred Merry Mischief Reardon & Garvey Step in Time Swallow Tail Trio Sessions (Open music jam) Tim Daly- Seanachie

2007
Sept. 15th & 16th

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7th Annual Niagara Celtic Heritage Festival & Highland Games
Holding a festival in autumn, one can never guess the weather. We do what we can to prepare for anything as we hope for sunny skies. On our seventh year, society members and volunteers set-up the festival Friday and Saturday, fighting together against enormous wind gusts and bitterly cold temperatures. Early on that chilly Saturday morning, as volunteers raced to repair and complete set-up with less time than ever before, there was a silent fear that the weather would scare many away. But by noon those worries disappeared, as so many of you ignored the wind and cold and passed through our newly designed Front Entrance. The wonderful dedication to our festival by thousands who attended was a truly wonderful blessing, which each member of the society will never take for granted. There is no way to extend our thanks to so many who ignored the weather and joined us to celebrate! By Saturday evening, the Ceilidh was well underway, and both Penny Whiskey and The Town Pants thrilled fans and newcomers alike with their amazing performances. We look forward to them joining us in future festivals!

Early Sunday morning the wind had died away, and the sun returned. The crowds kept right on coming, helping us celebrate one more day of celtic heritage. Never before have the cheers from the stands at the Highland Games actually drowned out performances on the Main Stage! And no one who stood in the Pavilion when Celtic Spirit Pipe Band took the stage will ever forget their breathtaking performance. We thank so many participants who come each year, and bring their own special surprises.

So again, we thank all who joined us during our seventh year. There are many exciting new additions already planned for 2008, and we can't wait until next September to begin this wonderful festival all over again. And as for the unpredictable fall weather in New York: rain or shine, wind or even snow...BRING IT ON!

2006

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6th Annual Niagara Celtic Heritage Festival & Highland Games
In 2001 the Niagara Celtic Heritage Society undertook their dream that Historic Olcott Beach would be the perfect location to host a Celtic festival. One where everyone around the globe could join together in the various Celtic traditions and celebrate this wonderful heritage. But each year as we worked countless hours to prepare for the big fall weekend, we all couldn't help but quietly wonder, was it a possibility or just a dream? Would others want to celebrate at a local Celtic festival as much as our members? It was in this, our sixth year that you (attendees & participants) answered back with a resounding YES! We deeply wish to thank everyone for the wonderful success that Niagara Celtic found this year, with a special THANK YOU to our volunteers. Many of our volunteers worked all day with few or no breaks just to help keep everything in order. We couldn't have done it all without you! Preparations are already underway for our seventh festival, and we look forward to seeing you all back in Krull Park in September!

2005

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5th Annual Niagara Celtic Heritage Festival & Highland Games
Our fifth year marked our 5th Annual Festival, and with that came many surprises, including some we didn't plan! The Ceilidh was quite a spectacle, with the birthday cake and glow necklaces only adding to the enormous bonfire and wonderful music. The weekend's sunny weather also helped make our festival truly memorable. After five amazing years seeing this festival grow, we sent a thanks and wish to all with our 2005 blessing: 'May the dreams you hold dearest, be those which come true.'

2004

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4th Annual Niagara Celtic Heritage Festival & Highland Games
What an extraordinary weekend! The Niagara Celtic Heritage Society would like to thank everyone who visited our special two day event. This festival could not go on without the hundreds of entertainers, vendors, volunteers, athletes and visitors. We are all very excited for next year's festival ~see you in 2005 for our fifth birthday!

2003

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2003 Niagara Celtic Heritage Festival & Highland Games
Our 2003 festival was our most successful yet! We send thanks to the many entertainers, volunteers, vendors, athletes, NCHS members, and visitors who celebrated the magic and excitement of Celtic Heritage. We chose this year's theme to be family entertainment, and we worked hard to entertain all the guests who entered our gates. Congratulate yourself for helping this wonderful festival in its third year, and for those who remember, thank the sky for holding off the rainstorms until after Sunday's closing ceremonies!

2002

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2002 Niagara Celtic Heritage Festival & Highland Games
The NCHS sends many thanks to the over 1,500 people who visited us at our 2002 festival, held for the first time at Krull Park. Our attendance more than doubled in size from our first festival, and we can only hope to do the same every year in the future!

2001

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2001 Great Lakes Celtic Festival & Highland Games
We proudly held our first festival on the grounds of The Harbor Resort in Olcott. Held only two weekends following the tragedies of 9/11, the festival coordinators considered canceling the entire event. Urged to continue "leading normal lives," the decision was made to press on...although a few events would change, including holding a parade with the local fire companies to honor those lost on that horrible Tuesday. Saturday went well, although the gray skies may have kept some people away. Sunday however, was wonderful; the sky was bright and warm, and the wonderful smell of kettle corn surrounded the field as the athletes competed in front of an amazing crowd. By the end of this last day, everyone working felt it had been a success, and buzzed excitingly about what next year might bring.