Well we're starting off the year with another event that forces me to greet customers with a “Hi there, I’m fucking cold, how are you?”
32nd Annual Fire & Ice Festival
Saturday, January 25th
10:00am - 4:00pm
Mill Race Village
Mount Holly, NJ
Vendors, Food Trucks, Beer Tasting, Fire Performers, Ice Sculptures, Chili Cook-off.
In the quaint, historical village of Mount Holly, NJ.
A street festival celebrating the opposing forces;
Fire and Ice.
Two destructive yet powerfully creative forces of nature.
A chili cook-off, Ice carvers & fire dancers.
A bunch of vendors.
I’ll be there, selling my fire-produced creations with my frozen fingers.
🔥‘Fire items’ like my candlestick holders, incense burners & plant-medicine apparatuses.
❄️‘Ice items’ like well, literally everything because it’s going to be cold!
According to Norse Mythology, the creation of life and all existence was formed by the merging of fire and ice. In the beginning, there was nothing but a void of darkness until two realms were created. Niflheim was the realm of ice, frost, fog and eternal darkness. Muspelheim was the realm of fire, extreme heat, lava and smoke. Ice flowed south and fire roared north; a collision of forces sprouting the seed which all life stems from.
📍Mills Race Village, Mount Holly, NJ.
I am thrilled to return to historic Mills Race Village in Mount Holly. I attended a witchy night market back in October and it was a magical time. Upon entering the main street village, I found myself transported back in time; gazing upon the 18th century architecture.
Founded by the Quakers nearly 100 years before the American Revolution, the village maintains the charm of early-American history. Said to have been invaded several times by the British, it was a landmark that played a crucial role in George Washington’s iconic defeat in Trenton. A place I consider Jersey’s ‘Salem,’ it is known for having its own witch trials.
According to an article on October 22nd, 1730 in the Pennsylvania Gazette; townsfolk began fearing the worst when a man and woman were accused of witchcraft for “making their neighbors sheep dance in an uncommon manner, and with causes hogs to speak and sing Psalms.” This article of course has been debated as whether or not it was purely satire, or if it was written based on true events.
This legend granted Mount Holly with yet another story to add to its list of WeirdNJ lore:
📖 Historic Burlington County Prison- Rumored to be one of the most haunted places in the Garden State. Constructed in 1811, It's history involves public hangings in the prison yard, several brutal murders and jail-breaks, it even once housed the infamous Boston Strangler. The 1830s brought the first execution; which he was buried beneath a tree in the prison yard. His ghost has been said to haunt the prison which is now a museum.
The eery sound of chains clanking, ghostly grumbles, the smell of cigarette smoke, apparitions appearing, & even tools disappearing and reappearing within locked cells - are some of the paranormal activity reported over the years on the grounds of this historic prison.
📖Holy Holy Holy Alter - Atop a wooded hill called ‘the Mount,’ an abandoned stone altar that is filled with haunted lore.
Rumors have claimed the Jersey Devil once terrorized the townsfolk of Mount Holly after being summoned by a witch. They managed to rally together to bind him in chains, imprisoning him beneath this stone alter. Legend states if you put your ear to the stone, you can hear his chains clanking and scratching to be freed. It was also a site rumored to be an old judgement table, and the location where several witches were hung.
📖Witch’s Well - Legend states that the first woman accused of being a witch was thrown down a well; not killed from the fall, she remained at the bottom of the dark well for several days, crying & screaming, banging on the walls for help, cursing her accusers until her last breath. Townsfolk ignored her calls for help, leaving them haunted with the sound of her cries from atop the hill.
A stone building was constructed overtop the well to silence the haunting and contain her spirit. It is said that if you knock on the door, you can hear her knocking in response. It has long been gated off with video surveillance to keep trespassers out.
A curiosity for history, local legends and paranormal lore have long intrigued me;
an inheritance from both of my parents that I will always be grateful for.
I am thrilled to kickstart the 2025 event schedule with another trip to Mount Holly, especially with my new-found knowledge of the town's history and lore. The Fire & Ice Festival is in its 32nd year, and I am looking forward to joining this anticipated event with my ceramic creations.
I will for sure be complaining that I am freezing, but every festival I have attended has always been such a joyful and rewarding experience.
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