Visitors roam around the 60+ vendors making up the 2023 Williamsburg Farmers Market hosted on Duke of Gloucester Street every Saturday. 
Tracy Frey, manager of the Williamsburg Farmers Market, poses with her rescued porcupine at the market information booth. 
At the market information booth located at the top of Duke of Gloucester Street, Tracy Frey, market manager, introduces her rescued porcupine to any intrigued community member. 
A line of customers form in front of Agriberry Farm’s booth, a fruits only producing farm, bringing fresh produce from Hanover County. 
Virginia Bread Company had a non-stop flow of customers practically selling out of inventory before 10 a.m.. 
Timothy Seaman, compelling acoustic musician, serenaded the market on June 3rd, while playing his hammered dulcimer. 
Gift of Nature employees stand behind their weekly booth. The farm sprouted in 2001 and is a family business that sells flowers and plants grown on their three-acre property in York County. 
Visitors inspect plants for sale by Cachalot Farm on June 3. 
Even bunnies make their way down to the Williamsburg Farmers Market every Saturday. 
Audio Portrait Vocal Harmony Trio played for the market crowd on June 10th. 
One third of Audio Portrait’s Vocal Harmony trio rocked out on the keyboard and provided vocals last Saturday, June 10. 
A grandmother and her two grandsons cool off with some popsicles from Joysicles, a natural ice pops vendor. 
Hundreds of locals and Colonial Williamsburg visitors mill up and down Duke of Gloucester. 
Jenna Holliman, Children’s Tent volunteer of seven years, poses at the Children’s Tent with the purpose of introducing kids to new fruits and vegetables. 
Bouquets of Blessing grows and harvests their own flowers and arranges them into bouquets for the weekly market. 
Two visitors take a break from the sun near the Chef’s Tent with their two furry companions. 
Another popular booth located at the top of Duke of Gloucester Street, Amy’s Garden, sells fresh produce grown out of Charles City County, VA. 
Furry companions join their family’s outing to the Williamsburg Farmers Market every Saturday. 
It is hard work manning a booth-this puppy and his buddy just needed a quick snooze before jumping back into work.
WILLIAMSBURG, VA — Walking down Duke of Gloucester Street (DoG) on any given Saturday morning, there’s a high chance you might meet a bunny, a porcupine and many, many dogs.
The City of Williamsburg started up their weekly farmers market for the market season in March of this year. The farmers market, open 10 months out of the year, takes place every Saturday on Duke of Gloucester Street and in the Short Stay parking lot in downtown Williamsburg.
“Our mission statement is pretty simple and that’s to operate a market right here in the center of Williamsburg, but if you take a look at our objectives I think that tells a better story as to how we accomplish our mission,” said Tracy Frey, manager of the Williamsburg Farmers Market, while holding her rescued porcupine who accompanied her to the market June 10.
Frey said the objectives of the market talk about creating a vibrant economic hub, creating a sense of downtown and making it equitable and accessible to everybody in the community, which allows them to do “really fun and amazing things as an organization that typically would not fall under the run of a farmers market.”
Some of the more intricate programs the Williamsburg Farmers Market has been able to put together are active food access and equity programs like a newly-established senior nutrition program and other state initiatives on a national agenda, like nutrition incentives.
A majorly popular initiative that promotes healthy eating and the farmer’s market is housed under a bright orange and green tent at the start of DoG Street.
“The Children’s Tent happens every summer, every Saturday, of course, and so what we do is we get kids to try new fruits and veggies,” said Jenna Holliman, Children’s Tent volunteer of seven years. “They then participate in an activity and the whole family kind of gets involved, which is great to see, and then once they complete that we then give them three market bucks to spend at the market.”
The Williamsburg Farmers Market started in 2002 with 16 vendors and now in their 21st year it houses almost 60 vendors every Saturday. It is a food producers-only, “Virginia-Grown” market, running from March to December allowing for a consistent “incubator for local businesses from the ground up.” The farmers market has allowed for community and local business growth as a whole, according to their market guide.
“I love that all the people are always in such a great mood,” said Heather Dye, vendor employee at Column 15. “No matter what, I do not get a grumpy person here at the farmers market. You could probably get one in a shop sometimes because it’s not going fast enough, but here they don’t mind standing in a line waiting for their coffee.”