Hartford yard sale this weekend

By Dan King

All this weekend, the “Heart of Washington County” will be the place to be for those seeking the thrill of a bargain.

Hartford will host its annual town-wide garage sale on Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 8 and 9, throughout the community, at both private and public locations.

“We’ve got over 40 sales and people can find a little bit of everything,” said Bonnie Williamson, an event organizer.

Williamson added that some of the more ambitious sellers will begin on Friday.

“If you get a chance to come out on Friday, there will be sales already started,” Williamson added. “It’s a great weekend event.”

Maps will feature all the sale locations, making it easier for those who are looking to find the bargains.

Williamson said the sales are just one aspect of the weekend festivities.

There will be two flea markets this year, an outdoor one at Stella Rose Bed and Breakfast and an indoor one at the Hartford firehouse. The firehouse flea market has been an ongoing event during townwide garage sale weekend, but the outdoor flea market is new this year.

On Saturday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., the Hartford Youth Commission has reserved the school parking lot for the event. The Youth Commission tent will hold a fund-raising food sale of cold drinks, hotdogs, burgers, chips, sausage/peppers, etc. Youth Commission soccer signups will also take place at the tent that day.

Other local groups will take part in the weekend’s festivities.

Hartford Boy Scout Troop 40 will sell food near the Post Office and will compete against the Hartford Youth Commission for the title of “best hotdog.”

The Hartford Fish and Game club will have a Sunday take-out chicken BBQ at the usual spot next to the Stewart’s Shop on Route 40.

The Hartford Museum and Howard Hanna Civil War Enlistment Center on Main Street will be open throughout the weekend.

Restroom facilities will be located near the Congregational Church in South Hartford and near the museum on Main Street.