Through October, Sunday mornings at 2299 South Street follow the same pattern. Farm tables go up on the Nathan Hale Homestead grounds at 10 a.m. and come down at 1 p.m., and the house stays open for tours until 2. Entry to the grounds is free, though some programs charge a fee. This year the 250-year-old house behind the market tents may have scaffolding up, and Connecticut Landmarks bills the market as the largest farmers' market in Connecticut.
After the October 4 Apple Harvest market, three outdoor Sundays are left. The calendar doesn't taper off as it gets there. A September storm pushed one of the season's busiest program days into October, the house's tour season ends with the month, and a separate winter marketplace opens across town on November 1, the Sunday right after the Homestead's last one. If your weekend runs on the market, the routine has no break this fall. It just changes location.
How a Canceled Sunday Ended Up on October 11
Connecticut Landmarks closed the Nathan Hale Homestead on Saturday, September 26, and Sunday, September 27, because severe weather was forecast. It canceled that Sunday's market too. The lost Sunday had been planned as CT Cheese Day. The Buzz About Honey had already run as its own theme on September 13. The organization's September 25 update moved the combined Cheese Day and the Buzz About Honey to October 11.
October 11 already had a theme. The market's 2026 calendar lists it as National Farmers' Day. The make-up program now shares that date, so a single Sunday carries cheese, honey and Farmers' Day all at once.
Cheese has a solid base at this market. On the October 4 roster, Cato Corner Cheese is marked as a full-time vendor. Mystic Cheese Company and Sweet Pea Cheese appear on that week's list as well. For honey, Stonewall Apiary sells honey and beeswax products, including wildflower and infused honeys. The market hasn't posted a vendor roster for October 11 yet, so the October 4 list is the best guide to who usually shows up. Weekly lineups do change.
What the October 4 Roster Says About the Season's Final Stretch
The market posts its vendor notes one Sunday at a time. The October 4 notes show the fall harvest and fall baking at full speed:
- 18th Century Purity Farm, a full-time vendor, listed Mac and Cortland apples, Bartlett pears, cauliflower, carrots, onions, summer squash, zucchini and several potatoes, fingerlings included.
- Colgan Farm listed no-spray beets, watermelon radish, heirloom carrots, curly green and purple kale, Swiss chard and a long list of peppers, from sweet bell to banana.
- Catbird & Company, the Colgan Farm soap and candle line, brought new fall scents, plus a tallow line made with tallow sourced from New Boston Beef.
- Bake Bake Hooray brought Caramel Apple Cinnabuns and Apple Spice Snickerdoodles with caramel dipping sauce, along with iced and hot mulled cider.
- Brightside Brew Kombucha poured its Harvest Moon apple cider chai and debuted a "Witches Booch" made with pumpkin spice kombucha, brown sugar boba and pumpkin cold foam.
- Chet's Italian Ice moved on to an Apple Cider Sorbet made with fresh cider from Rogers Orchards in Southington.
- Blue Moon Woolworks swapped its penguins for needle-felted pumpkins.
The roster also lists the Booth & Dimock Memorial Library, so the town library has a spot alongside the farms.
The Friends of the Market discounts are worth using before October 25. On the same roster, 18th Century Purity Farm offers $1 off a total purchase for the whole season, Colgan Farm takes $1 off purchases of $15 or more, Chet's takes $1 off, and Blue Moon Woolworks takes $2 off any skein of yarn. Those offers come from vendors at the Homestead market, so don't assume they carry over to the winter marketplace.
The Remaining Calendar
The last three Homestead Sundays each have a theme. The two weeks after them introduce a new venue and a Saturday program:
| Date | Where | What's scheduled | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sun., Oct. 11 | Nathan Hale Homestead | National Farmers' Day, plus rescheduled Cheese Day and the Buzz About Honey | 10 a.m.–1 p.m. |
| Sun., Oct. 18 | Nathan Hale Homestead | Holiday Market | 10 a.m.–1 p.m. |
| Sun., Oct. 25 | Nathan Hale Homestead | Restock Your Pantry, the final themed market day | 10 a.m.–1 p.m. |
| Sun., Nov. 1 | Coventry High School, 78 Ripley Hill Road | Coventry Winter Community Marketplace opens | 10 a.m.–12:30 p.m. |
| Sat., Nov. 7 | Nathan Hale Homestead | "Old World Holidays: Celebrations in the New World" | 1–3 p.m. |
The market calendar lists October 18 as the Holiday Market. That day's event listing gives only the regular hours and has no separate program or vendor list, so there's nothing posted yet beyond the theme. Restock Your Pantry on October 25 is the last time the outdoor market sets up on the Homestead grounds this year.
The House Behind the Tents Turned 250 This Year
The Homestead has its own milestone this season. Connecticut Landmarks is marking the 250th anniversary of the house's construction. Starting in April, the house and outbuildings were scheduled for several months of preservation work, including window restoration, exterior painting and roof repairs. The organization's notice tells visitors what to expect:
"Programs will continue as planned, but you may see work vehicles and scaffolding on site, and tradespeople may be working during your visit."
The tour schedule is the part with a deadline. The house is open for tours May through October, on Fridays and Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m. and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tours start on the hour, and the last one leaves an hour before closing. On a market Sunday, the final house tour starts at 1 p.m., the same time the vendors pack up. Indoor tours cost regular admission, and the market page invites shoppers to stop in at the Museum Shop too.
The grounds stay open year-round from dawn to dusk, so the property is still there after the tour season ends.
Anyone hoping to see the house by flashlight this year is out of luck. "Things That Go Bump in the Night," the evening tour of the house and attic running October 9 through 24, is listed as sold out, and no tickets will be sold at the door.
The anniversary programming continues past October. On Saturday, November 7, from 1 to 3 p.m., the Homestead hosts "250 Years of Celebrations | Old World Holidays: Celebrations in the New World." The program looks at European-rooted traditions such as Guy Fawkes Day, mumming and wassailing, as well as Thanksgiving customs. Admission is $30, or $25 for Connecticut Landmarks members. The Homestead's current program list stops at that event and shows nothing for December yet.
November 1 Moves Sunday Mornings to Ripley Hill Road
The Sunday after Restock Your Pantry, the Coventry Winter Community Marketplace opens at Coventry High School, 78 Ripley Hill Road. It runs Sundays from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and its season goes from November 1 through April 25. It describes itself as a market for local farmers and makers "all winter long," with produce, meats and jams available every week.
Compared with the Homestead schedule, the winter market keeps the 10 a.m. start but closes half an hour earlier, at 12:30 instead of 1. Anyone who usually shows up near closing time on South Street will need to come a bit earlier on Ripley Hill Road.
The winter marketplace's site uses the line "Continuing the tradition." It doesn't say whether it's run by the same organizers as the summer Coventry Farmers' Market. Treat it as its own market with its own vendor list. As of this fall, it's still accepting vendor applications for the 2026–27 season. Its Facebook page is the place to watch for the opening-day lineup.
One Road Note for October and November
The town is replacing the Bunker Hill Road bridge. In the town manager's September 4 project update, the contractor was on site and the road was closed until the end of November 2026. If your Sunday drive normally uses Bunker Hill Road, plan a detour for every remaining Homestead market and the winter marketplace's first weeks. Check with the town for the latest status, since the September update is the newest one available.
If the Homestead's window restoration and fresh exterior paint have you thinking about what your own Coventry home needs before winter, The Corrado Team can help you decide which updates are worth doing and how they'd affect your sale price. Request a complimentary home valuation, and we'll walk you through what your home is worth today and which preparation steps would make the biggest difference.
