Coventry, Connecticut

stead museum, which chronicles the Hale family’s history. Coventry is also home to the Nathan Hale Ancient Fife and Drums Corps. The group per- forms throughout the East Coast and also holds an annual Colonial Encampment and Muster at the Hale Homestead. Then there’s Coventry’s Farmers’ Market, which draws 3,000 to 5,000 people per week. It’s located on the Hale Homestead’s grounds and operates from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sundays, June through October. The market moves indoors to Coventry High School from the end of November through February. The town’s Economic Development Commission started the market 15 years ago. It was initial- ly a small venture, with fewer than 20 vendors arrayed in a field. “It grew over the next 14 years to what it is today,” says Erica Pagliuco, Coventry’s Farmers’ Market Master. “Today, it is the biggest farmers’ market in Connecticut.We believe it’s the COVENTRY, CONNECTICUT largest in New England.” John Elsesser, Coventry’s Town Manager, adds that it was investments by the town that helped spur that growth. “We have a partnership,” ex- plains Pagliuco. “We’re self-funded at this point, but the town invested seed money a few years ago to bring it back to being a town project. It had a different lifetime during the middle years. It was funded by a 501(c) (3), but through all those different chapters, the same founder was involved.” The Coventry Farmers’ Market now has a min- imum of 80 vendors each week, offering wares from local farmers, artisans, food providers, and more. Of that total, 65 are full-time participants and there are another 15 to 50 guest vendors occupying booths there. “They’re all Connecticut producers and they’re all personally responsible for making their products in the state of Con- necticut,” says Pagliuco. “We’re also unique in that we have that requirement.We work tightly with the Department of Agriculture in the state to en- sure that all of our vendors produce in the state.” She adds that the market is also populated by 10 full-time farmers from the surrounding area, as well as specialty food providers, food trucks,