October 15, 2026
York Road and Old York Road run north through Parkton a short drive apart, and this fall each carries its own calendar. On York Road you get the fire company's festival, the Saturday farmers market and a December holiday party at a restaurant everyone knows. Old York Road has a family farm celebrating its tenth year, with ticketed events from mid-October until the first weekend of December. In and around Parkton, the dates go on until mid-December, and the easiest way to plan them is by road.
The anchor is the Hereford Volunteer Fire Company's Hereford Fall Festival on Saturday, October 17, and Sunday, October 18, 2026. Hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Tickets at the door cost $10, children under 12 get in free, and advance tickets are sold at a discount. The fire company says proceeds pay for the equipment, apparatus and operations its volunteers rely on all year.
Some things are new for 2026. The festival is adding raw oysters and a 12-by-7-foot video wall that will show college football on Saturday and the Ravens at the Browns on Sunday at 1 p.m. The festival advertises 75+ local vendors selling handmade goods, apparel, home décor and holiday items. The landing page also lists 18+ food vendors, plus draft beer and cocktails.
On parking, the current festival page gives the parking and entry address as 17200 York Road, Monkton. An older event page on the same site lists 17300 York Road, Parkton. Go by the current page, and check with the fire company if your GPS sends you somewhere that doesn't look right.
The festival grounds sit near the Hereford Farmers Market at 17301 York Road in Parkton. Maryland's Best lists it as a producer-only market open Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon, May through November, selling produce, meats and handmade goods. That gives the market about seven more Saturdays this year, through November 28. Festival Saturday on October 17 is one of them, so the market's morning hours overlap with the first hours of the festival.
A few minutes west, The Farmyard at 21159 Old York Road started in 2016. Its welcome note, signed by Renée, says she and her dad, Steve, set out to give the community authentic agriculture experiences and build good relationships between farmers and consumers.
The farm has moved its anniversary event later in the season. Its ticket page says Fall on the Farm was postponed and is now Halloween on the Farm, Sunday, November 1, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., and that the farm is celebrating its 10th anniversary at that event. That's the Sunday after most local pumpkin patches have closed for the year.
Everyday admission is cheap. Adults pay $3 and children ages 2 to 17 pay $2, plus online fees. A household season pass costs $40 before the online fee and covers regular hours from September through December. Weekly activities are ticketed separately:
The farm also runs a Sunday Bunny Encounter at 4 p.m. on October 18 and November 29. The October date falls on Fall Fest Sunday, so a family could do the festival in the afternoon and finish on Old York Road.
There's also a reason to stop by without a ticket. The Farmyard says visitors shopping only at Weber Bros Produce, its Retail Shed or its Snowball Stand don't need admission. The farm says its partnership with Weber Brothers started in spring 2021. The stand sells local conventional produce on Saturdays and Sundays during regular farm hours, and stock isn't guaranteed.
The table puts both roads, plus a couple of nearby stops, on one timeline from this week through mid-December.
| Date | Road | Event | Host |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thu, Oct 15 | Markoe Rd, Monkton | HZBA happy hour, 5:30–7:30 p.m. | Hereford Zone Business Association at Inverness Brewing |
| Fri, Oct 16 | Old York Rd, Monkton | Dinner-and-show event | The Manor Tavern |
| Sat–Sun, Oct 17–18 | York Rd | Hereford Fall Festival | Hereford VFC |
| Sun, Oct 18 | Old York Rd | Bunny Encounter, 4 p.m. | The Farmyard |
| Sun, Nov 1 | Old York Rd | Halloween on the Farm, 11 a.m.–2 p.m. | The Farmyard |
| Sun, Nov 8 | Old York Rd | Ask a Beekeeper Pro, 12:30 p.m. | The Farmyard |
| Thu, Nov 19 | Wiseburg Rd, White Hall | HZBA networking, 5:30–7:30 p.m. | HZBA at The Crafty Studio |
| Sat, Dec 5 | Monkton Rd | Cash bingo, doors 5:30 p.m. | Hereford VFC |
| Sat–Sun, Dec 5–6 | Old York Rd | Winter Wonderland 2026 | The Farmyard |
| Sun, Dec 13 | Monkton Rd | Breakfast and craft fair | Hereford VFC |
| Tue, Dec 15 | York Rd | HZBA holiday party, 5:30–7:30 p.m. | HZBA at Casa Mia's |
The fire company and the farm book the same December day. On Saturday, December 5, The Farmyard opens Winter Wonderland with an interactive hayride, vendors and games, and that evening the fire company holds cash bingo at 510 Monkton Road. The fire company's December 13 schedule has breakfast from 8 to 11 a.m. and a craft fair from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Its calendar lists admission at $14 for adults, $8 for ages 4 to 10, and free for children 3 and under.
Both roads have restaurants that tie into the calendar.
On York Road, Casa Mia's at 17417 York Road describes its menu as Italian, Greek and American. It's known for colossal lump crab cakes and serves lunch, dinner and weekend brunch seven days a week. The Hereford Zone Business Association has booked it for the December 15 holiday party, which ends the season on the same road where it began. North on York Road, The Fill Er Up at 21307 York Road promotes homemade comfort food and online ordering, with menu items like a pierogi melt and omelets.
On Old York Road, The Manor Tavern at 15819 Old York Road in Monkton describes its food as modern country and farm-to-table. Its site shows fall and winter menus for 2026 and weekly specials. It has a dinner-and-show event on Friday, October 16, the night before Fall Fest starts.
Just off both roads, Inverness Brewing at 16200 Markoe Road in Monkton is a farm brewery that describes its approach as "crop to keg." The taproom is open Thursday through Sunday, noon to 8 p.m. Its October calendar has live music on the same Friday as the Manor Tavern show, with The Wafflers Duo playing from 4 to 8 p.m. on October 16.
Two stops off either road are only open for a few more weeks.
Maple Border's last maze day, October 31, is the day before The Farmyard's anniversary event on November 1.
At The Cornerstone Agency, we keep up with what's happening along York Road and Old York Road because the businesses and events on each road are part of what a home there is worth. If you're thinking about what your Parkton property might sell for, or which road suits you best, contact us and we'll go through it with you.
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