Each year hundreds of artisans don costumes to prepare for the annual Yankee Peddler Festival. For many, it's a longtime tradition.

Wayne Marks, The Brick Road Ramblers

Where to find them at Yankee Peddler - Muskrat Cove

The four-member Akron-based group has been together for about nine years and has been playing at Yankee Peddler for about five years, said Akron resident Marks.

"We were all mutual acquaintances," said Marks, who
primarily plays violin and mandolin and sings.

He and Ron Johnson, who plays banjo, dobro and guitar, started out "playing old tunes together." Both of them lived in Highland Square , Marks said, which became the inspiration for the group's name.

"There are several brick roads in that part of Akron ," Marks said. "So we called ourselves the Brick Road Ramblers."

Dave Stroh, who plays guitar, percussion, bass and vocals, and Tom Schurr, who plays upright bass, tenor banjo, tenor guitar and vocals, joined the group
later, Marks said.

"We play a lot of old, traditional types of music, and we are always looking for places to perform," Marks said of his start with Yankee Peddler. "We sent them an audition tape and were booked."

Marks called Yankee Peddler "the best gig of the year for us."

"We get away from reality one time a year in the fall," he said. "We put on our costumes, we get
to play the music we love, we get large crowds and we have dancers, the Sunshine Cloggers, who dance to our music. Kids come up to us and ask us about our instruments and ask about our songs."

For details on the Brick Road Ramblers, visit
www.brickroadramblers.org.