ALBEMARLE — Over the Halloween weekend, Stanly County celebrated a number of events across the area. While in 2020, events were largely scaled back due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 2021 saw their full return.
The main event for the county, per tradition, was the Autumn Extravaganza, held Thursday, Friday and Saturday in downtown Albemarle. This annual event is a major feature of the year and celebrates everything fall related — including Halloween costumes, pumpkins and ghost stories.
On Thursday, there was a costume parade, trick-or-treating, a costume contest and a haunted 5k race. There was some rain that evening, but the city of Albemarle said on social media that “The rain didn’t dampen the fun at last night’s Fall Festival!”
Friday saw a couple of events put on by the Stanly County History Center. First, at 5 and 6 p.m., there was a 45-minute Ghost Walk tour of downtown Albemarle, which started at the History Center, and then afterwards, at the Historic Snuggs House, they held an event called “The Mourning of Ellen Snuggs.” According to the flyer, it said “This candlelight tour will explore the unusual and often bizarre customs and rituals of death and mourning during the Victorian era of 1886.”
Later that evening, at City Lake Park, the parks and recreation department played the 1988 movie “Beetlejuice,” featuring Alec Baldwin, Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder. There was a food-truck rodeo on site for those gathered.
Also on Friday, the Stanly County Sheriff’s Office held their annual Trunk or Treat from 6 to 8 p.m. behind the courthouse, which was well attended.
The next day, for the big finale, there was a farmer’s market and craft fair in the morning, and then the main event — a street fair with music and food into the late afternoon. The band, “The Legacy Motown Revue,” brought people to their feet to dance to classic oldies hits.