Zanesville’s beloved annual festival, Zane’s Trace Commemoration, is brimming with exciting family-friendly fun and plenty of opportunities to learn about local history. The three-day event begins on Friday, June 13, from noon to 9:00 p.m., continues Saturday, June 14, from 10:00 a.m. (kicking off with the grand parade) until 9:00 p.m., and concludes Sunday, June 15, from noon until 7:00 p.m. Most of the festivities are centralized around the Putnam Landing and Muskingum Avenue area just south of the 6th Street Bridge. There is no admission charge.
“The Zanes Trace commemoration has got a long, long reign,” said Zane’s Trace History Director Gary Allen. We found some information that said that they actually started back in the 40s, but it kind of didn’t take off back then. But 1973 was the first year that it came back. And that came back with a vengeance. And back then, the whole community of Muskingum County and Zanesville was involved. Every business was involved with it. — In 1974, there were over 100,000 people here for this event.”
Since 1974, the event has adapted to accommodate the present-day attendee and has gone through a cycle of various themes including waterways, steamboat technology, and Zanesville’s early development. But one thing remains: it is all about local history.
“The theme is railroads, and there is a 20- 25-minute history video that goes along with the theme,” explained Allen. “Saturday will be the big day. The two railroad modeling groups will be there. Both of these are models of Zanesville and the Zane Trace group; they’re not associated with us, but they have built the Lee Street B&O Repair Depot. And that has the old roundhouse, all the machine sheds. Back in the day, there used to be over 20 some tracks, railroad tracks, that stretched from all the way from Linden to Blue Avenue. Back in the day, Zanesville was one of the big dogs on the B&O line, and they were responsible for taking care of all their own locomotives. And these guys, I’ve thought about building that model before, but these guys actually have a working one that’s mobile. And they take it to all these different shows.”
There are so many noteworthy things planned over the course of the event, one of those being the inaugural Outhouse Race set for Friday at 6:00 p.m. Three-man teams will compete in custom-built outhouses complete with a commode and TP. The homemade outdoor loo will travel down a 300-foot portion of Muskingum Avenue. You will want to ready your cameras to capture this crazy addition to an already memorable event.
The grand parade is rumored to be the largest in years, with approximately 100 participants planned. The route will start at Shinnick Street and will travel to North 6th Street, then to East Main Street, and up South Third Street. The parade is completely free to enter and is open to businesses and organizations. Floats, cars, motorcycles, horses, and more will bring this tradition to life once again in Zanesville.
Also on Saturday, there will be a free SCW Wrestling show live at 7:00 p.m. at the Putnam Landing Area.
The Anything That Floats But a Boat race is back again this year! The race will begin at 2:00 p.m. and will take place on the Lock 10 Canal.
Train models will be at the History tent on Saturday, along with a guest speaker at 1:00 p.m., Bill Logan. “He’s a graduate of Zanesville High School in 1971, I believe it is,” said Allen. “He’s going to do a seminar and talk about the Narrow Gauge Railroad, how it affected Mistingham County. And there is nobody better to talk about this stuff.”
Over 100 food trucks and craft vendors will also be set up. A long lineup of musicians are also scheduled to perform throughout the event. A full schedule for the Commemoration is below.
For more information about the Zane’s Trace Commemoration, visit their website zanestracecommemoration.com or find them on Facebook @ZanesTrace.
2025 Zane’s Trace Commemoration Schedule:
Friday, June 13
• 12:30 PM- Ribbon Cutting with Mayor (At Main Stage)
• Noon- 9:00 PM Live Music (At Main Stage)
• Noon – 9:00 PM Railroad History, Working Models and More (In Field)
• Blacksmith Demonstrations (In Field)
• 6:00 pm The Great OUTHOUSE Race! (Lower End of Muskingum Ave.)
Saturday, June 14
• 10:00 AM Grand Parade Starts (To be Held Downtown)
(After Parade Everything Opens)
• Noon-9:00 PM Railroad History, Working Models and More (In Field)
• Blacksmith Demonstrations (In Field)
• Noon-9:00 PM Live Music (At Main Stage)
• Noon-3:00 PM – Kid’s Fishing Tournament (Putnam Landing) for ages 5-17, free entry and bait
• 2:00 PM – Live Auction
• 4:00 PM Karaoke Contest (DJ Laidback & DJ Vibe) (Lower end of Muskingum Ave)
• 7:00 PM SBC Wrestling (Lower End of Muskingum Ave)
Sunday, June 15
• 11:00-AM-7:00 PM Live Music (At Main Stage)
• Noon-7:00 PM Railroad History, Working Models and More (In Field)
• Blacksmith Demonstrations (In Field)
• 2:00 PM Anything That Floats But A Boat Race (On the Canal between 6th street bridge and Y bridge) (Registration and launch into canal starts at 1:00 PM)
• 4:00 PM-6:00 PM Zane’s Trace Commemoration: Car Show No entry fees! (Corner of Putnam Ave & Adams St, Van Wye Motors)
2025 Zane’s Trace Commemoration Live Music Schedule:
Friday, June 13
5-7 PM – Falling Under
7-8 PM – Evan Abood
8-10 PM – 1988
Saturday, June 14
11 AM-1 PM – Slaw Dog
1-10 PM – Many Thieves
2-4 PM – TBA
4-5 PM – Donna Walton
5-7 PM – Up 2 No Good
7-8 PM Jason Edward Adams
8-10 PM Rock this Way
Sunday, June 15
11 AM-1 PM – Spelchek
1-2 PM – Johnny Ohio
2-4 PM – Rushing Wind
4-5 PM – E-Wade Acoustics
5-7 PM – Justice 316
(The stage will be set up at the Putnam Landing Area.)
This schedule may change. Please see the Zane’s Trace Commemoration website for updates.
