Feast of Lanterns

The Feast of Lanterns is a festival with a long history and personal connections for many Near Eastside neighbors and neighborhoods. It is also a marketing opportunity both to and for the area, its residents, and organizations.

Its earliest incarnations in the late 1800s were of small gatherings and decorated front porches in nearby neighborhoods like Woodruff Place. By 1909 these neighborhood events had morphed in to a single, larger festival that took place in Spades Park. Neighbors came out to hang paper lanterns—lit first by candles and later by electric lights. The park, historic bandstand, and numerous bridges were illuminated by the colorful lantern lights. Nearby homes would participate by decorating their porches.

The event continued until around WWII when it ceased to be put on, but In the early 2000s local neighbors from Windsor Park and Springdale, looking to begin an outdoor music festival, re-discovered the event. and it has continued to its current incarnation.