Warren Scott CHRISTMAS FUN CONTINUES — Area residents and visitors still have time to see the many life-size nutcrackers lining Fourth Street in Steubenville and vote on their favorite Christmas tree from those also found there as the Nutcracker Village’s Christmas ac

STEUBENVILLE — Area residents and visitors have this weekend to browse Historic Fort Steuben’s Holiday Market before it closes for the season, while many features of the Nutcracker Village will continue through the week ahead.

Since Nov. 28, Fort Steuben Park has been the site of a 30-foot lighted Christmas tree and 20 small chalets occupied by vendors selling a variety of hand-made items, treats and other merchandise.

After opening from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, the market will continue from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.

The fort’s visitors center and gift shop also will be open during those hours, with self-guided tours of the fort itself available during the same hours.

Paul Zuros, executive director of the fort, said visits to the fort have been numerous, with people coming from throughout the Tri-State Area and other countries.

“We’ve had approximately 30,000 visitors. They come from everywhere. We had people from Germany, England and Siberia,” he said.

Among many browsing the gift shop on Friday morning was Beth Ault of Akron, who said she makes time to visit the fort and the Nutcracker Village while visiting family each Christmas, but many in her city know about the Christmas attraction.

“People in Akron know about the Nutcracker Village,” she said.

Debbie and Rick Lamb of Weirton came to the fort with their daughter, Ashleigh, and her husband, Cody Cooper, who live in Michigan.

Debbie Lamb said, “It was actually my daughter’s idea (to come). Every year we say we’re going to do it and we don’t. So, this year, we did and were very pleased.”

Mark Thornton of Maplewood, N.J., said he and his wife and two daughters were taking time during a visit with his sister in Steubenville to see the Nutcracker Village.

“We’ve seen a bunch of them and they’re really cool,” said Thornton, who noted the variety of personalities expressed through the figures, which have been inspired by active community members, assorted professions, local sports mascots and others.

The life-size nutcrackers are produced by Nelson’s Fine Art and Gifts, a local business owned by Mark Nelson, who launched the event with Mayor Jerry Barilla and others in 2015.

Nelson’s son-in-law, Brodie Stutzman, carves each of them, while other members of the Nelson family also contribute to the attraction in various ways, from painting them to transporting them to their sites each year.

A map of the Nutcracker Village can be obtained at Drosselmeyer’s Nutcracker Shoppe at 155 North Fourth St. or online at https://www.steubenvillenutcrackervillage.com/the-nutcracker-map.html.

The Nutcracker Village’s Advent Market, with its own variety of vendors, can be found on North Fourth Street from noon to 6 p.m. Sunday and Jan. 3.

In addition to the many nutcrackers at the fort and along North Fourth Street, visitors will find many small Christmas trees decorated by various groups and take time to vote on their favorite.

Votes are $1 each and may be cast up to noon on Wednesday, with winners to be announced on Thursday.

Groups behind trees that receive at least 10 votes will receive the money that has been spent to vote on them.

The contests’ sponsors, the Steubenville Cultural Trust and Tri-State Financial Services, will award $500 to their selected winner.

Votes also can be cast online at https://pollunit.com/en/polls/nvtreecompetition.

Robin and Gary Temple of Cincinnati were among visitors on Friday to the Artistry of the Nativity exhibit, a collection of more than 400 from at least 31 countries displayed at 147 North Fourth St.

Temple said they learned about the event through social media and already have made plans to return next year.

“This is so festive. I love it. It’s gorgeous,” she said.

The displays can be viewed indoors, for a donation of the attendee’s choice, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesdays and Thursdays and from noon to 8 p.m. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through Jan. 9, with the exception of New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.

On hand to answer questions about the display was Anthony Vento, a friend of George Dvorsky, to whom the many nativities belong.

Vento explained Dvorsky, a Manor, Pa., native, acquired them through his extensive travels as an actor of the stage.

Now living in New York City, Dvorsky also has lent his voice to many films, including Disney productions.

Vento said Dvorsky had attended school with a member of the Nelson family and was invited to display his many nativities as part of the Nutcracker Village.

The assorted depictions of Christ’s birth are of various sizes, materials and origins, from soapstone figures carved in Tanzania to mangers created with painted gourds in Peru.

Vento said the donations made by the exhibit’s visitors will support efforts to make it a year-round attraction and by St. Norbert Media to re-establish homeless shelters in the city.

The Nutcracker Village also will offer a Polar Express-themed hayride starting from there between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturdays and Sundays through Jan. 4.

Free face painting, Christmas crafts and other activities for youth will be offered by the Hilltop Montessori School at the Children’s Corner at 338 Market St. from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturdays and 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays through Jan. 4.

Children also can visit with Santa and Mrs. Claus there from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Inclement weather and other conditions could affect some of the offerings, and updates can be found on the Steubenville Nutcracker Village Facebook page.

Zuros said once the fort’s Holiday Market has closed, he and others there will begin planning for its 2026 events.

“It’s going to be a big year for us,” he said, noting it marks the 20th anniversary for the fort’s series of summer concerts, the 40th anniversary of the fort’s re-creation and the nation’s 250th birthday.

Zuros said the fort’s Christmas attractions wouldn’t be possible if not for many sponsors and volunteers, including Steubenville High School students who built three of the chalets and applied their computer programming skills to the “talking” trees.

“It’s really a community effort rather than just a fort event,” he said.

Zuros added, “It’s really heartwarming to see so many folks who have made the fort and the Nutcracker Village a part of their Christmas tradition. It makes all of the work worth it.”