What's Happening in Medina This Week, September 21-27, 2026

Last week I promised this week would belong to the Medina Fall Festival, and it does. Saturday morning the whole square fills with hay bales, horse rides, and the season's first big pumpkin fun, with the farmers market running right beside it. Beyond the square, Akron hosts its signature race weekend, Blossom closes out its concert run for a stretch, and a pair of Summit County harvest festivals round out the weekend. Let's get into it.

Wednesday, September 23

Art Blooms 2026 at the Akron Art Museum

Midweek, a good reason to point the car toward Akron: the Akron Art Museum is opening Art Blooms 2026, with a "Skin Color" tour on Wednesday as part of the new exhibit's opening, right before the museum celebrates the Reopening Weekend of its restored 1899 Building starting Friday. Pair the art with lunch downtown and it makes a lovely grown-up outing mid-fall-week. Check the museum's site for tour times and admission details.

Thursday, September 24

Tracy Lawrence at the Akron Civic Theatre

Country music fans get a fine Thursday night out as Tracy Lawrence brings his No Alibis Tour to the historic Akron Civic Theatre at 7:30 PM. The 1990s country hitmaker has a catalog full of crowd favorites, and the Civic's main auditorium is a beautiful place to hear them. It is an easy drive up State Route 18 from Medina, and tickets are available through the Civic's box office.

Friday, September 25

Akron Marathon Kids Fun Run

Race weekend kicks off Friday night with one of the sweetest traditions in Akron: the free Kids Fun Run at 6:00 PM. The non-timed one-mile run is open to kids 12 and under, stepping off from Akron Children's Hospital at 214 W Bowery St and finishing at Lock 3 on S Main St. Every finisher gets a gift, a medal, and a healthy snack, and the run is capped at about 1,000 kids, so register early. Parents who run or walk with a child register for free too. It is an electric, family-friendly way to get the whole household moving before the big race the next morning.

Bryson Tiller at Blossom

Friday night Blossom Music Center hosts its final show for a stretch, and it is a big one. Bryson Tiller presents The Neo Trapsoul Tour at 7:30 PM with Majid Jordan, Ty Dolla $ign, and Austin Millz on the bill. Expect a smooth, hit-filled night on the lawn in the Cuyahoga Valley, an easy drive from Medina and a lovely way to close out Blossom's September. Tickets are through blossommusic.com or Live Nation.

Folk Stories from the Chippewa Tribes at Krabill Lodge

If arena shows are not your speed, the Medina County Park District has a quieter, fascinating Friday night: "Folk Stories from the Chippewa Tribes" runs from 7:00 to 8:30 PM at Krabill Lodge near Chippewa Lake, an evening program exploring the constellation stories and traditions of the Chippewa (Ojibwe) people. It is a free program that brings local heritage and the night sky together, and the setting along the lake is beautiful as the sun goes down.

Long Time Gone: A CSNY Tribute at the Knight Stage

Also Friday night in Akron, the Knight Stage at the Akron Civic hosts "Long Time Gone," a Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young tribute performed by John, James and Clara at 7:30 PM. Expect close three-part harmonies and the Laurel Canyon songbook in an intimate theater room, a warm pick for music fans, especially the classic-rock crowd.

Saturday, September 26

Medina Fall Festival on the Square

The main event. Main Street Medina's Fall Festival fills Public Square from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM with everything that makes autumn in Medina County feel like home: a hay maze, pumpkin painting, line dancing, live music and entertainment at the gazebo, horse rides, an apple cider press demonstration, face painting, a balloon artist, carnival games, a petting zoo, and a costumed puppy parade. There is also a chili cook-off, a fall flowerpot contest, craft vendors, and a fall-themed photo op, plus the Medina County District Library brings its Book Bike. Admission is free, and the weekly farmers market runs on the same square at the same time, so you can browse, taste, and stock up all in one stop.

FirstEnergy Akron Marathon, Half Marathon & Team Relay

Downtown Akron belongs to the runners Saturday morning as the FirstEnergy Akron Marathon, Half Marathon and Team Relay steps off at 7:00 AM, starting on High Street next to the Akron Art Museum and finishing on S Main Street in front of Canal Park. The certified course tours some of Akron's best scenery, from the Towpath Trail and Sand Run Parkway to the Stan Hywet estate to Highland Square, and the course-side energy all day long is something special. Even if you are not running, bring the family down to cheer at the finish line, then wander back to the square for the festival afternoon.

Ohio Vintage Fest Fall Edition

Treasure hunters, this one is for you. The fall edition of Ohio Vintage Fest takes over the Emidio & Sons Banquet Center in Cuyahoga Falls from noon to 5:00 PM Saturday, a big vintage and thrift vendor market with racks and tables full of finds from across the region. General admission is $5 and kids under 12 get in free. It is a fun, browse-y Saturday afternoon outing that pairs nicely with a farmers market in the morning.

Stow Historical Society Harvest Festival

For a full harvest-weekend experience, the Stow Historical Society's Harvest Festival runs Saturday and Sunday from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM at Heritage Reserve Park in Silver Springs Park. It is a classic autumn craft and heritage festival: craft vendors, live music, a concession stand, old-fashioned apple butter, and interactive children's activities with farm-living exhibits, plus tours of three historic furnished homes, a one-room schoolhouse, and an antique tool barn. It is the society's big annual fundraiser, so wandering the grounds does double duty as a good cause.

A Final Saturday for Some Local Markets

Grab the reusable bags: Saturday is the last market day of the season for a couple of our favorites. The Main Street Wadsworth Farmers Market wraps its 2026 season from 9:00 AM to noon, and the Seville Farm Market finishes up at Maria Stanhope Park from 9:00 AM to noon as well, right alongside the Medina Square market downtown. Get the last of the season's apples, produce, and baked goods before the stalls tuck in until spring.

Preserving Your Herbal Harvest at the Park District

Gardeners can put the season's abundance to good use Saturday with "Preserving Your Herbal Harvest" at a Medina County Park District site, a free program for adults and seniors from 11:00 AM to noon. Registration opened September 24, so check the district's programs page for open spots and the exact location.

Sunday, September 27

Stow Harvest Festival, Day Two

The Stow Historical Society's Harvest Festival welcomes visitors again Sunday from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM, a second full day of apple butter, craft vendors, and the historic homes in Silver Springs Park. Sundays here tend to be a bit less crowded than Saturdays, which makes wandering the grounds and the one-room schoolhouse a little easier for families with small kids.

Dead Media Market at Missing Falls Brewery

Vinyl heads and media collectors will want to find the Dead Media Market Sunday at Missing Falls Brewery in Akron, a market built around the formats we used to love: records, tapes, film, and vintage media of every stripe. Grab a brew and dig through the crates; it is a fun and nostalgic way to close out the weekend.

Heritage Farm Museum Farmers Market

Brunswick's Sunday market fans still have a happy place: the Heritage Farm Museum & Park Farmers Market runs Sundays from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM at 4613 Laurel Rd, a cozy fix of local produce and farm goods in the middle of the county before the colder months truly arrive.

Around Town This Week

Blossom takes a bow for a bit. After Friday's Bryson Tiller show, Blossom Music Center goes quiet until early October, so the Cuyahoga Valley roads and lots will feel lighter than they have all season. If you have been wanting a low-key weekend in the park, this is the one: no concert traffic, plenty of trailhead parking, and the leaves just starting to turn along the Towpath.

One-stop Saturday on the square. The Fall Festival and the Medina Square Farmers Market run side by side on the same block Saturday morning, which makes the festival-plus-market combo a genuinely easy morning: festival fun for the kids at one end, market produce at the other, lunch by the gazebo in between. Street parking fills early on festival mornings, so plan to use the municipal lots a short walk from the square.

Mark your calendar. The Medina Square Farmers Market keeps its Saturday rhythm through October 10, and October is when the county really leans into leaf season and fall family weekends. There will be more good stuff in next week's note as the calendar firms up.