Canton First Monday Trade Days

CANTON FIRST MONDAY TRADE DAYS

Since 1850 in a town in East Texas called Canton an event called First Mondays has occurred the weekend prior to the First Monday of each month. First Monday's has grown from an event for farmers to market their wares to an event where armies of vendors sell a huge variety of items to thousands of shoppers in a shopping zone sprawling over hundreds of acres.
Click here for a map with directions to the location of Canton First Monday Trade Days

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You might guess from this photo that this visit to Canton First Monday Trade Days occurred the first weekend of December. You would be correct.

One of the arched "Canton First Monday" entries.

AS OF JANUARY 1, 2008 DURANGO TEXAS IS BLOGGING

This map shows only part of the Canton shopping area.

This area looks like you've crossed into a shopping street in Mexico.

To help ease the agony of walking which occurs after about 3 hours of wandering around Canton's First Monday Trade Days, multiple vendors offer motorized scooters for $7 an hour or $50 for all day. The scooters come with handy carrying devices for your purchases and some even have built in tables enabling one to consume food without leaving the scooter.

Click here for a map with directions to the location of Canton First Monday Trade Days

There are many buildings filled with vendors. The buildings are called Arbors. As in Arbor 1, Arbor 2, Arbor 3...etc.

You can get anything you need to furnish a house.

Including an assortment of rocking chairs.

Many eateries in one of the Arbors. With interesting names. Like the Monkey Crepe and the Purple Pig.

The General Store of the Cowhill Express Coffee Company seems almost Starbuckian with its coffee selection and number of people buying coffee and something to dunk.

At Tubby's Grub you can get Fried Oreos among other nutritious fare. The Fried Oreos are only 4 for $2. It is a wonder and a testament to how physically active Texans are that with all these fried temptations Texans somehow manage to stay off lists naming the Most Obese People in the U.S.

Here we see some Canton First Monday Trade Days shoppers enjoying some of the ubiquitous Fried Fare.

Fried Green Tomatoes is not just a movie. It is a Southern Delicacy.

Fried Pies are as good as they sound with the best maybe being Apricot.

Roasted Corn sounds, looks and smells better than it actually is. The Texas corn that we've eaten has been very chewy.

The owner of this eatery may have attended the same school as a certain former U.S. Vice President.

Click here for a map with directions to the location of Canton First Monday Trade Days

Pork Kabobs and Cheese Fries.

Texas size Burgers and Frito Pie.

Here you can sample some popcorn while your peruse multiple guns for sale.

Another gun vendor. It is easy to be well-armed at the Canton First Monday Trade Days.

Outside the permanent buildings there are many more vendors. Like a garage sale on steroids.

An oversized example of 'Southern Pride'.

Many flags to choose from, including the U.S. Flag and the flag that represented the Confederate states, of which Texas was one..

Free rides on trolleys take weary walkers back to their cars. Or to other areas of the Canton First Monday Trade Days shopping zones.

A lone big oak shades a small part of one of the large parking areas. Parking ranges from $3 to $4. Admission to First Mondays is free.

Click here for a map with directions to the location of Canton First Monday Trade Days

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We got a good Canton First Mondays Update from a First Mondays Expert

I am Douglas Wolfe, owner and operator of 1stmonday.com. I really liked your article about the First Monday Trade Days in Canton, Texas. The pictures were especially great combined with the comments.

There are just a couple points I thought I might bring up.

The arched gate is the east entrance off Highway 19, the west entrance off 859 has an arch quite different from it. Inside the east gate arch is the statue named The Trade.

The map on the grounds you have pictured basically shows the original grounds, the city owned park and the Lewis pavilions. which make up maybe half the total now a days.

The event now covers near, if not over, 300 acres, comprises over a dozen major areas, each owned and operated by different groups or entities and has over 28 miles of paths, aisles walkways etc.

You mentioned the buildings called the Arbors. they are a few called that. Most are called pavilions or the trade centers such as trade center 1 through 4 and pavilion 4000, 4500, 6000, Pavilions I, II, III and so on. There are also the areas like the Turners East Gate Marketplace, dog alley, the mountain, mill creek, and several others. Some such as the canton civic center and the canton marketplace are climate controlled.

Also parking can still be found for $4.00 at a few lots but usually is $5.00 these days.

In addition to the free trolley there is also a man who uses what appears to be an extended golf cart to transport people back and forth between areas and does so for voluntary donations.

One of the most interesting attractions at the trade days is the old west town on the mountain. Where people dress the period and reenact gun fights Et Cetera.

That concludes our visit to Canton's First Monday Trade Days

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