It was announced last year that Malad’s famous Welsh Festival, which had been held at the City Park and nearby church building in Malad for around two decades, will be moving to Samaria’s Heritage Square this year.  

The move was inspired by a number of different things—one of them was a desire to return to a more historically focused, trim version of the Festival, and another was the wishes of those who had been running it over the last many years.  

Samaria makes a perfect place to celebrate Welsh heritage in the Valley, as it has a long historical connection to the Mormon settlers who entered the valley around a century and a half ago.  Heritage Square is also already setup to host events that bring in many visitors, and already contains historic cabins, as well as a number of other Welsh items, artifacts, and history.

The Festival has also been scheduled to take place later than it had in the past.  In prior years, the Festival had been held in late June, often the weekend before the Fourth of July holiday.  At times, this did run the risk of muddying the connection between the two, separate events and potentially depressing the turnout as a result.

A stage has been poured at Heritage Square, which should be perfect for a variety of planned events.

 This year, the Festival will be held in September, creating a late summer/early Fall celebration to add to the calendar after the Fair season has finished.

In preparation for this year’s change in locale, materials that had been stored at the Oneida Pioneer Museum were moved out to be stored in Samaria until they are needed.  At present, most of the equipment has been relocated.

The Poetry contest/Bard chairing is being retained by the Festival despite the changes, and more information about events and deadlines will be presented as soon as it is available.