Prater's Mill

Prater's Mill, in Varnell Georgia, seen here in operation in 1905.

As children, we used to go once a year to the Prater's Mill Fair. In fact, back when I was in both 4H and Girl Scouts, I would go twice. For two years, if memory serves, I led the ponies for children's pony ride (which ended abruptly when one very mean pony decided to bite my shoulder; this was after I had earned both my horse back riding merit badges from the scouts, and before I learned to smack their noses hard when they bite you). Ponies are not nice creatures; would you be if you were the Napoleon of the horse kingdom?

The fair was truly a wonder of country delights. My favorite? Ah, you could have guessed it yourself had you known me as a teenager - my dresser was stocked with a glass unicorn, a glass dragon, a pegasus, a fairy, and any other small and fanciful concoction the glass blower had (that I could afford) for me once I got to the fair. Unlike my sisters, I was never one to be suckered into the land of funnel cakes or taffy or cookies or brownies or cobbler (still do NOT like baked fruit) but like a magpie I have always been drawn to the shiny things. Funny, really, I would be out of the car, up over the embankment, across the highway (whether or not the cop told me to cross), through the ticket booth and into the fairground (really a giant meadow next to the mill) before anyone else was even out of the car, off in search of my blown glass.

Now, this isn't the kind of fair like a mid-way fair. No, no rides, no screaming things, no neon, no whacking and jumping and clanking around of things; no, this is a crafts fair, where people make things and sell them to you, where you talk to people about what they do...you know, a fair for grownups. Where people do things like....watch clogging contests (I am not yet so old that I find this entertaining; seventh level of hell), or watch someone make pottery, or go to the mill and tour it while it is doing it's grist-work. That kind of thing. It was safe enough (omg) 15 years ago that we ran about totally unattended, and played in the stream barefoot. Oh, and ate, and ate, and ate and were expected to be back at the car by four thirty for the ride home.

It was that kind of fair, with that kind of people.

Anyway, this years fair is October 11 and 12th. Varnell is not that far away from Atlanta - Road Trip! It costs $5 - and I'm willing to bet that most of the Atlanta folk who read this blog have never, ever been. Go!

More info?

http://www.pratersmill.org/