Eliot Ness Fest; July 14-16

Coudersport, PA, July 11, 2023 --(PR.com)-- One of the region’s biggest attractions, the festival recalls the famous American crimefighter who spent his final years in Coudersport. Attendees are encouraged to dress in period costumes. A schedule of events along with parking instructions and other timely information can be found on the website, eliotnessfest.com.

As in past years, the popular “Eliot Ness vs. Al Capone” scenario will be played out – this time with several new twists.

It begins with gangsters slipping into town on Friday and brazenly setting up vice operations, including a Speakeasy Beer Garden operated by Coudersport Rotary. At 6 pm, Capone and his cronies will hijack the main outdoor stage at Main and Second Streets to announce that they have taken over the town.

But Eliot Ness and his “Untouchable” federal agents will have the last laugh, right after a Saturday afternoon parade that is going to be full of shenanigans and surprises.

Then, on Sunday, members of the Eliot Ness Fest Theatre Troupe will bring their schtick to a community picnic with games and music at the courthouse square.
Ness vs. Capone is just a small part of a festival filled with variety.

Vendors will line the square on Friday and Saturday and there will be a “kids’ corner” operating across the street.

Musical performers on the main stage in the center of town will include the Brass Machine Band (Friday, 7-10); Old Guys Rock Ensemble (Saturday, noon to 2), and the Buffalo Jazz & Swing Band (Saturday, 6-10). Dancers can shake a leg on a ground-level stage.

Free bus tours, complete with colorful anecdotes, will embark from the Potter County Historical Society Museum to several local sites that were connected to the Prohibition Era in Coudersport. They’re scheduled from 1 to 4 on Friday, 10 to 3 on Saturday, and noon to 3 on Sunday.

As a tribute to a multi-faceted career that makes Eliot Ness one of the world’s most law enforcement figures, this year’s festival theme is “Never Stop Fighting: Salute to Law Enforcement and First Responders.”

Local agencies will be joined by representatives from two of the agencies where Ness earned his claim to fame, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) and the City of Cleveland Police Department.

ATF will bring along its state-of-the-art response vehicles and other specialized crime detection tools. Cleveland Police Historical Society will arrive in vintage vehicles and set up its mobile museum.

Other law enforcement and public safety exhibits will be set up at a Law Tent. Organizers have designated a portion of this year’s festival proceeds to local emergency response agencies.

On a related note, an awards ceremony will be held on the main stage at 11 am Saturday to honor law enforcement figures from yesterday and today.

Coudersport’s Eliot Ness Museum will be offering tours on all three days. Tickets are limited and available on the website, eliotnessmuseum.org. Any unsold tickets will be available at the door.

Also at the museum, a reception for descendants of the “Untouchables,” federal agents who served under Ness in gangland Chicago, will be held at 1 pm on Saturday. Tickets can be purchased online at eliotnessmuseum.org.

Portions of Main and Second streets will be blocked from traffic beginning at 5 pm. Parking instructions, a schedule of events and other information can be found on the website, eliotnessfest.com, or the Eliot Ness Fest Facebook page.