WHATELY — With the changing of the seasons comes the Whately Historical Society’s annual Fall Festival to bring residents and visitors together for a family-friendly celebration of autumn and the town’s history.

The festival, which has been a tradition for more than four decades, will be held at Whately Town Hall, 194 Chestnut Plain Road, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 29. Admission is free, although attendees are encouraged to bring money to purchase food, drinks and all sorts of gifts based on the town’s history.

Whately Historical Society President Neal Abraham said the festival is a chance to get together with neighbors.

“It’s a chance to gather with family and friends for activities for the whole family,” Abraham said. “Come and enjoy the music, the Chestnut Serenaders, a group of musicians mainly from Whately who actually rehearse here at Town Hall.”

This year’s event features all of the staples of years past, like trying your hand on an antique cider press using apples from Quonquont Farm, alongside some new presentations, such as Lois Bean’s discussion and display focused on her five months at Japanese farms in 1955, which was a trip sponsored by the International Farm Youth Exchange.

Other opportunities include checking out the Historical Society’s “Childhood in Whately: 1771-1950” exhibit, which brings together a collection of toys, photos, journals, costumes and more to explore how children lived and worked in the town. The Historical Society is also offering exhibits on the Fred (Twarog) Farrick and Roote-Waite-Markland family histories, showing photos and artifacts from these multi-generational families.

Abraham noted the family exhibits are a project the Historical Society began a few years ago. The exhibits offer a chance to see artifacts from when some of these longstanding families first immigrated to Whately.

A group of Whately residents have also created a 1/12-scale miniature tobacco wagon and horses, complete with harnesses, for people to take a look at.

Meanwhile, the Historical Society will be running a “History’s Mysteries” trivia game, which will enter folks into a drawing for a chance to win one of the society’s T-shirts.

“It’s about questions relating to the history of Whately,” Abraham said. “They can come to the museum and get a head start.”

Pioneer Valley-based food vendors will be on hand, with Northampton’s P’Frogi serving homemade pierogi, golumpki and fruit pies, as well as Florence-based Masa Mexicano serving masa bowls, horchata and aguas frescas. Hadley’s Maple Valley Creamery will offer free ice cream.

For more information, visit the Whately Historical Society’s website at whatelyhistorical.org. The festival is supported by a grant from the Whately Cultural Council.

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com.