Good morning, Bastrop County! 🤠
The kids are back in school, which means the house is quiet, the pickup line is long, and you have earned a weekend that belongs entirely to you. The county obliges. Saturday and Sunday the Convention Center fills up with the 9th Annual Main Street Market, roughly a hundred vendors deep, so you can knock out your Christmas shopping in August and tell everyone you are simply "ahead this year." First, one civic duty: Bastrop County Best voting closes at midnight tonight, and yes, we are on the ballot. Then Tuesday brings the debut of the Neighbors of Elgin magazine, and Saturday night Micky & the Motorcars turn Rising Sun Vineyard out in McDade into a red-dirt dance floor. Want more than just this week? Our Bastrop County events guide runs year round. Let's dig in.
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Our Bastrop Current Community Group on Facebook is where neighbors drop flyers, ask for recommendations, and confess what they wandered into last weekend. Come join us.
🛍️ Featured This Week | 9th Annual Main Street Market | Bastrop
There is a particular kind of Texan who starts thinking about Christmas gifts in August, and this weekend the Bastrop Convention & Exhibit Center is built for exactly that person. The 9th Annual Main Street Market rolls in Saturday and Sunday with two days of vendors and makers: candles and clothing, jewelry, home decor, hot food, and the kind of hand-poured, small-batch, you-cannot-find-this-at-the-mall goods that make the drive worth it.
It is put on by the folks at Texas Market Guide, who run these markets all over Central Texas and bring the good parts with them, chiefly the hourly door prizes, which is their polite way of telling you to hang onto your ticket and keep your phone handy. Admission is free, the air conditioning is very much not optional in August, and a portion of the proceeds goes to local food pantries, including the First Baptist Church of Bastrop pantry. So you shop, you snack, you maybe win something, and you do a little good on your way out the door. That is a strong Saturday.
Bring a tote. Bring cash and a card. Bring the friend who "doesn't need anything" and watch them leave with a candle.
Know before you go
🗓️ Saturday, August 22, 10am - 5pm | Sunday, August 23, 11am - 4pm
📍 Bastrop Convention & Exhibit Center, 1408 Chestnut St, Bastrop
🎟️ Free admission | hourly door prizes | benefits local food pantries
🌐 Event details
🗳️ Last Day to Vote for Bastrop Current
Bastrop County Best is the county's reader-choice awards, and the polls close at midnight tonight, Monday, August 17. Here is the part where we ask, hat in hand: Bastrop Current is on the ballot under Marketing, Media, Design & Promotional Services, and if this little newsletter has earned its spot in your inbox, we would be honored to earn your vote too.
While you are in there, vote for the shops, restaurants, and people who make this county feel like home. It costs nothing and takes about two minutes, which is less time than you will spend tonight deciding what is for dinner.
🗓️ Bastrop County Events | August 17 - 23, 2026
Today | Monday, 🗓️ August 17
🗳️ Bastrop County Best 2026 | Voting closes at midnight | all day | The 23rd season of the county's reader-choice awards ends tonight. Last chance to back your favorite local shops, restaurants, and people, and if this newsletter has been useful, we'd be grateful for your vote. Vote for Bastrop Current
⚖️ A Matter of Balance | 1pm | Bastrop Recreation Center, 1008 Water St, Bastrop | A fall-prevention program for older adults. Registration required. City of Bastrop Recreation
✏️ Prime Timer Craft | Sketching for Beginners | 2 - 4pm | Elgin Recreation Center, 361 N Hwy 95, Elgin | A beginner sketching class for older adults, materials provided. Free, pre-registration encouraged. City of Elgin
🏛️ Special Called Planning & Zoning Commission | 5:30pm | Smithville City Hall, 317 Main St, Smithville | Open to the public. City of Smithville
Tuesday, 🗓️ August 18
🚐 Care-A-Van | McDade | 5 - 7pm | McDade Watermelon Festival Grounds, 1143 Bastrop St, McDade | Free soccer, basketball, archery, and reading tents for the kids while parents meet Community Health Workers about SNAP, WIC, Medicaid, and workforce programs. Bastrop County Cares
🎉 Neighbors of Elgin Launch Social | 5:30 - 7pm | Elgin Chamber of Commerce, 23 N Main St, Elgin | The first issue of the Neighbors of Elgin magazine lands, with finger foods, wine, desserts, and a copy to take home. Free. Elgin Chamber of Commerce
🎤 Open Mic at Gracie's | 6 - 8pm | The Grace Miller, 706 Pine St, Bastrop | The Bastrop Live Music Foundation's monthly open mic. Perform or just listen, full menu available. Free. Bastrop Live Music Foundation
🏛️ Town Hall | Wastewater Treatment Plant Upgrade | 6pm | Smithville City Hall, 317 Main St, Smithville | ESG representatives walk through the coming plant upgrade and take resident questions. City of Smithville
🏛️ Elgin City Council Regular Meeting | 6:30 - 7:30pm | Elgin City Hall, 310 N Main St, Elgin | Open to the public. City of Elgin
Wednesday, 🗓️ August 19
📖 Reading Ranger with Ranger Madalyn | 10:30 - 11:30am | Smithville Public Library, 507 Main St, Smithville | Buescher State Park's Ranger Madalyn guest-reads at Little Bookworms, with a craft to take home. All ages, free. Buescher State Park
📚 Bébé Bilingüe Story Time | 10:30 - 11am | Elgin Public Library, 404 N Main St, Elgin | Free bilingual early-literacy story time for ages 0 to 5. City of Elgin
👶 Toddler Time | 11am - 1pm | Bastrop County Community Center, 15 American Legion Dr, Bastrop | Play-based fun for ages 2 to 5 and their grownups, with AgriLife parenting sessions and resource giveaways. Free, registration required. Bastrop County Cares
Thursday, 🗓️ August 20
🧶 Fiber Arts and Friends | 10am - 12pm | Elgin Public Library, 404 N Main St, Elgin | Bring your knit, crochet, or stitch project and craft in good company. All skill levels, free. City of Elgin
🥬 Elgin Farmers' Market | 4 - 7pm | Veterans' Memorial Park, 109 Depot St, Elgin | Produce, meats, and baked goods, with live music. SNAP accepted. Elgin Farmers Market
🚐 Care-A-Van | MLK Park | 5 - 7pm | MLK Park, Smithville | Free family wellness night with outdoor activities, fitness, food, and community resources. Smithville Area Chamber
🏛️ City Budget Workshop #3 | 5pm | Smithville City Hall, 317 Main St, Smithville | Open to the public. City of Smithville
💬 You Matter Support Group | 6 - 7pm | Elgin Public Library, 404 N Main St, Elgin | A weekly, judgment-free peer support group. Free. City of Elgin
Friday, 🗓️ August 21
🧸 Little Learners Storytime & Craft | 10:30 - 11:30am | Elgin Public Library, 404 N Main St, Elgin | Playful storytime and a craft for ages 4 to 6. Free. City of Elgin
🎬 Family Movie Night | 6:30 - 8pm | Elgin Public Library, 404 N Main St, Elgin | The third-Friday family movie, popcorn included. Free. City of Elgin
🎣 Evening Fish with a Ranger | 7pm | Buescher State Park, 100 Park Rd 1E, Smithville | Learn to cast a line at Buescher Lake with a park ranger. Park entry fee applies. Buescher State Park
🎸 Sonny Wolf Live | 7 - 10pm | Copper Shot Distillery, 809 Main St, Bastrop | Blues-rock on the Main Street patio to start the weekend. Copper Shot Distillery
🌟 Saturday, 🗓️ August 22 | The Big Day
🌲 Exploration Station | Come & Go Discovery Table | 9am | Bastrop State Park, 100 Park Rd 1A, Bastrop | Drop-in ranger table on the little critters of the Lost Pines. Park entry fee applies. Bastrop State Park
🥬 Bastrop 1832 Farmers Market | 10am - 2pm | 1302 Chestnut St, Bastrop | Produce, grass-fed beef, eggs, honey, plants, and makers, every Saturday year-round. Bastrop 1832 Farmers Market
🛍️ 9th Annual Main Street Market | Day 1 | 10am - 5pm | Bastrop Convention & Exhibit Center, 1408 Chestnut St, Bastrop | Two days of vendors and makers with hourly door prizes (see above). Community Impact
📚 Sensory Storytime | 10:30 - 11:30am | Elgin Public Library, 404 N Main St, Elgin | A sensory-friendly story experience for little ones. Free. City of Elgin
🏹 Archery 101 | 1pm | McKinney Roughs Nature Park, 1884 State Hwy 71 W, Cedar Creek | A beginner archery lesson. $25, registration required. LCRA Parks
☕ Thriller Book Club at The Owl | 2 - 3pm | The Owl, 106 N Main St, Elgin | A thriller-lovers' book club at the downtown coffee and wine spot. City of Elgin
🎸 Larry Wilson Band | 2 - 4pm | The Front Room Wine Bar, 116 Main St, Smithville | Houston-bred electric blues over an afternoon glass on Main Street. The Front Room Wine Bar
🎸 Moving Blues | 6:30 - 9:30pm | Copper Shot Distillery, 809 Main St, Bastrop | An Austin blues ensemble closes out the distillery's weekend. Copper Shot Distillery
🎶 Micky & the Motorcars | evening | Rising Sun Vineyard, 233 Edmonson Ranch Rd, McDade | Texas red-dirt country under the stars at the vineyard. Check the ticket page for set time. Rising Sun Vineyard
Sunday, 🗓️ August 23
🛍️ Smithville Sunday Market | 10am - 1pm | James H. Long Railroad Park, Main & 1st, Smithville | Locally grown, homemade, and handmade, with live music. Free. Smithville Sunday Market
🛍️ 9th Annual Main Street Market | Day 2 | 11am - 4pm | Bastrop Convention & Exhibit Center, 1408 Chestnut St, Bastrop | The second day of the vendor and maker market, with hourly door prizes. Community Impact
🐉 Teen D&D | 3 - 5pm | Elgin Public Library, 404 N Main St, Elgin | Dungeons & Dragons for teens, new and experienced players welcome. Free. City of Elgin
🔮 Planning Ahead
📬 In your inbox Thursday | Our midweek issue lands Thursday morning with a fresh Business of the Week (we are heading out to Paige) and the full weekend lineup.
🤠 Through Sat Sep 19 | Soul Circuit: Juneteenth Rodeos in Texas | Mon-Sat 10am - 5pm | Bastrop County Museum, 904 Main St, Bastrop | Sarah Bird's photographs of Black cowboys and cowgirls on the Texas Juneteenth rodeo circuit. Bastrop County Historical Society
🥩 Fri Aug 28 | Prime Rib Night | 5 - 9pm | The Front Room Wine Bar, 116 Main St, Smithville | Reservations 512-237-3626. The Front Room Wine Bar
🍶 Sat Aug 29 | Grape Stomp | 1 - 5pm, with The LTD's playing 4 - 7pm | Rising Sun Vineyard, McDade | Stomp grapes the old-fashioned way. Rising Sun Vineyard
🎭 Sep 4 - 27 | Disney's Newsies | Bastrop Opera House, 711 Spring St, Bastrop | The Opera House opens its fall season. Bastrop Opera House
🚂 Sat Sep 5 | Meet Me at the Depot | 9am - 12pm | Smithville MKT Depot, Smithville | A first-Saturdays series bringing the historic depot to life. Smithville Area Chamber
🐗 Oct 22 - 24 | 39th Annual Hogeye Festival | Downtown Elgin | Mark the calendar now. City of Elgin
🎁 August Referral Prize | $50 to Numero 28
Share your unique referral link below with one friend who'd love a weekly dose of Bastrop County, Texas. Every referral through your link is an entry to win a $50 gift card to Numero 28, the Italian wood-fired pizzeria and vineria on Main Street in Bastrop, with our winner drawn at the end of August.
How Did We Do?
Before you go
If you've got a flyer, an event, or a Bastrop County business worth featuring, hit reply. We read every email.
Want your business in front of Bastrop County? Hit reply and ask about sponsoring an issue or being our Business of the Week.
See you Thursday.
Marilyn - The Bastrop Current