Activities
Heritage Parade
Time: Begins at 10:00 AM – Location: Main Street
The Middletown Heritage Festival Parade kicks off the Festival with the Frederick County Honor Guard leading the parade down Main Street from Prospect to Willow.
With its dance groups, floats, marching bands and a variety of community organizations, the parade is always a highlight of the day.
Parade participants will stage from Cone Branch to Prospect on Main Street.
Grand Marshal for the 2023 Heritage Parade, Doug Martin
I'm nine months shy of being a lifelong resident of Middletown, having arrived here with my folks in January 1947. I graduated from Middletown High School in 1964. In 1966, I enlisted in the Marine Corps for two years and served a 13-month tour in Vietnam. Shortly after my separation, I attended business college and then worked for a CPA firm in Frederick for nearly three years. After several semesters at Frederick Community College, I transferred to Shippensburg University in August 1973 and graduated with a Geo-environmental Studies degree in late 1974. I returned to Middletown and worked for the Town for approximately four years. In 1979, I began working for Fredericktowne Bank and continued there for 23 years, retiring in 2002. Since then, I have volunteered with Middletown Valley People Helping People, the Middletown Food Bank and delivered meals on wheels for the Frederick County Department of Aging. Over the past 50+ years, I have been an avid cyclist, trail hiker and recreational walker. I consider myself blessed to live in this beautiful and welcoming community. - Doug Martin
Heritage Festival Booth
Location: Green Street in Town Hall Parking Lot
Be sure to check out the Middletown Heritage Festival booth. We have loads of merchandise for sale to remember your day at the festival! Mugs, t-shirts and other great keepsakes await you at the Heritage Booth.
And remember you can purchase year-round from our online store! Just click “SHOP” in the header above. We will deliver to your home if you’re local or ship to you if you’re far away!
Middletown Volunteer Fire Dept
First Aid Station & Safety Information
Zion Lutheran Church Parking Lot
MVFD will have lots of important information for both kids and adults on fire and personal safety in the home, bike safety, the new program “Close Before You Doze”. Check out the pieces of apparatus on display and ask questions of our firefighters and EMTs.
Christ Reformed UCC
The church will have the following activities at the church:
- Bounce House
- Bake Sale
- Children's Craft Activity - decorate and make a button
- History of the church including the Civil War
- Displays of Church activities, events and available study groups
- Children's Scavenger Hunt with prize bags for the first 50 participants
Renovation Tours
Location: 19 West Main Street
Main Street Middletown invites you to step inside a bit of Middletown history and see what we are doing to preserve one of the most photographed buildings in town. The circa 1870 Harness Shop, and more recently known as The Bussard Barbershop is a work in progress as we carefully renovate this one-of-a kind Middletown building. Once complete, the building will serve as a Welcome Center and offices for our nonprofit.
Ransom Note on Display
Town of Middletown Booth
Being on the National Road, Middletown experienced the Civil War in a very up-close and personal way. Troops traversed through town several times. Be sure to visit the Town’s display in front of Town Hall and learn how Middletown worked together to address some of those more terrifying moments, including when the Town was ransomed in 1864!
Christmas in the Valley Ornament
The 2023 Christmas in the Valley Collectible Ornament, 17th in a Series
The 2023 Christmas in the Valley collectible ornament depicts Cone Branch Pocket Park, one of four beautiful small parks in town. This park located at the corner of Main Street and Cone Branch Drive serves as a gateway to the downtown area of Middletown. While strolling through this park you can appreciate the lovely annual and perennial flowers, varied tree species, and bricked pathways leading to the gazebo. Inside the gazebo is a bricked “M” for Middletown and the outside is always festively lit for the holidays. In the grassy area, take a moment to rest on the bench and enjoy the view of Cone Branch Creek. The monuments showcase our varied non-profit organizations and at Christmastime the park hosts the Lion’s Club Memory Tree. The land for this park was dedicated to the town when Cone Branch Estates was developed in 2000 and the park was established in 2006.
This ornament can be purchased at town hall during normal business hours, at the town booth during the Heritage Festival, and during Christmas in the Valley on December 2, 2023. Cost is $30 and all proceeds help fund Christmas in the Valley. Limited supply so get yours today!
Friends of the Library Book Sale
The Friends of the Middletown Library will have a booth at the Festival and will be hosting their annual book sale at their new location in the barn at 3223 Old National Pike, just a mile west of town.
Middletown Heritage Museum
Location: Town Hall - 2nd Floor
The Town Heritage Museum is currently closed for some exciting upgrades that are being worked on right now! This includes adding to the collection of artifacts and photos to create a more detailed and immersive experience for our fantastic local history. We’ll post updates on the Town’s website, so check in often at www.middletown.md.us for the latest news.
