Old Town Waverly Park Festival announced as annual two-day heritage event

Old Town Waverly Park will host its long-running community gathering as an annual two-day festival celebrating local heritage, crafts and outdoor recreation, and the 2026 event is listed on the Morgan County tourism calendar. “The Old Town Waverly Park Festival is the village’s long-running community festival celebrating local heritage, crafts and outdoor recreation,” the festival listing states, and promotional materials highlight hands-on activities along the banks of the White River.

The park itself was created from floodplain buyouts after catastrophic flooding in 2008, with FEMA funds used “to help buy out property owners whose homes were in the flood area,” Morgan County tourism copy says. “Using that land, Morgan County created Old Town Waverly Park to help celebrate the small community's history and share it with visitors while also creating recreational opportunities and river accessibility,” the tourism material adds, framing the festival as part of the county’s recovery and river-access strategy.

Festival programming in available materials emphasizes living-history features and family activities. The 2026 listing “features demonstrations and reenactments of backwoodsman crafts,” a promotional snippet notes, and another item invites attendees to “Meet historic characters and participate in fun activities at the annual Waverly Park Festival.” One of the festival’s more attention-grabbing attractions is the tomahawk activity: “Seriously. Kids and adults alike can take a turn at hitting the target with a real tomahawk. (Don't worry, Mom, it's safe!),” the promotional copy states.

Sunday at the festival is earmarked for classic cars. Promotional copy repeats that “On Sunday only, the Waverly Festival welcomes participants in their annual car show, with registration beginning at 10 am.” A separate line specifies timing for spectators and exhibits: “Beginning at 10:30 am on Sunday, check out the Old Town Waverly Park Car Show!” Organizers note this will be “the third year for the car show, allowing you to to browse through the beautiful classic cars in a beautiful, historic setting.” The materials do not include registration fees, organizer contact details, judging criteria or the precise location within the park where cars will be displayed.

Materials provided to this newsroom confirm the festival’s two-day format and the inclusion of backwoodsman demonstrations, historic-character meet-and-greets, tomahawk throwing for children and adults, and a Sunday car show with registration at 10:00 a.m. and activities beginning at 10:30 a.m. They do not, however, publish exact month-and-day dates for the 2026 festival, daily start and end times beyond the car show, parking or accessibility information, or safety protocols and supervision details for the tomahawk activity.

“If you've never visited Old Town Waverly Park, there's truly no better time to visit than during the Old Town Waverly Park Festival!” the tourism copy urges, and it recalls Waverly’s river-town past: “Believe it or not, the little village of Waverly was at one time a thriving river town and was actually one of only two finalists to becoming the Indiana state capitol when they moved it north from Corydon.” Morgan County tourism materials list the 2026 festival; organizers have not released a full, date-specific schedule in the material reviewed here. County tourism or festival organizers are the listed channels for confirmed dates, detailed schedules, and operational information ahead of the event.