Towns and Villages: Aldie-Middleburg by Billie VanPay After the nation has mournfully remembered the events of Sept. 11, 2001, thoughts and attention naturally turn to relief, and fall celebrations in the neighborhoods and communities are there to help. The 42nd Annual Bluemont Fair is an excellent example of those community celebrations.The fair will be Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 17 and 18, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Bluemont, with the highest elevation in Loudoun County, is an unincorporated village at the base of Snickers Gap and the Blue Ridge, present-day Clayton Hall Road and Snickersville Turnpike, located on Route 7 just west of Round Hill. Its location at Snickers Gap has given the village a history dating back to the 1770s because passage through this gap reduced the distance to Winchester from points east.

In 1875, the Washington and Ohio Railroad, which began in Alexandria, was extended to Round Hill, and as a consequence, the little village then known as Snickersville and now Bluemont, began to entertain tourists.

Soon the automobile replaced the rails in tourist travel; Bluemont lost some of its tourist trade. Still, it continued to appeal to artists and musicians who helped start the fair in 1968 and the Bluemont Concert Series in the 1970s. Whether the fair is the attraction or just the village itself, Bluemont still is worth a visit.

The fair is one of the best organized and managed of all the events in and round the Blue Ridge. It begins with a 10K race in and around the countryside. The craft show includes apparel, arts, baskets, home accents, iron and copper works, jewelry, musical instruments, garden accents, pottery, sundries, toys and woven materials. There will be farmers' produce, down-home cooking, gourmet foods and wine tasting.

Just as importantly as all those things most people enjoy, entertainment for the family is the emphasis. There will be farm animals, beekeeping demonstrations, model train displays, organ grinding, pony rides and many more attractions for the young and young at heart. For more information about the fair, visit www.Bluemontfair.com  .

The Piedmont Philosophical Society will begin its fall season with Randy Rouse, who was Master/Joint Master of Fairfax Hunt for 50 years, as speaker. He will be telling about all the fun he had with George Preston Marshall and Jack Kent Cooke. The meeting will be 5 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 15 at the McGhee Library at Farmers Delight Plantation on Mountville Road. Call (540) 687-3743 for more information.

The Upperville Baptist Church would like to extend an invitation to their annual Homecoming on Sept. 18, with services beginning at 11 a.m., and a covered-dish luncheon afterward. Guest speaker is Dr. Ed Taylor of Amissville Baptist Church. Child care will be provided. More information, call (540) 592-3353.