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Located about 40 miles west of Tyler on Highway 64 is the City of Canton, the county seat of Van Zandt County, and home of the First Monday Trade Days, as shown on the map below. Its population is about 5,000 residents.
It is considered the largest free flea market in the United States, and is held on Thursday - Sunday preceding the first Monday of each month. Up to 100,000 visitors can shop there in a given weekend.
First Monday Trade Days currently operates over 100 acres and provides places for about 6,000 vendors.
There are various buildings and areas, each designated by name, including the Original Pavilions, Old Mill Marketplace, The Village, The Mountain, The Arbors and The Dog Alley.
September 2 - 5, 2010
September 30 - October 3, 2010
October 28 - October 31, 2010
December 2 - 5, 2010
While Canton has several motels and other accomodations, many visitors choose the wide variety and greater number of hotels and motels available in nearby Tyler.
Tyler is easily accessible from Canton via either Interstate Highway I-20 or Texas Highway 64. Also, Tyler Pounds Airport provides jet service and is located on the west side of Tyler, only about 20 minutes from Canton.
Other popular Canton area attractions include Zip the USA, home of the longest zip lines in Texas, and the nearby community of Edom, the setting for festivals, potters, artists, restaurants, and nurseries such as Blue Moon Gardens, our favorite! And just to the east of Canton on I-20 is Splash Kingdom Water Park.
Also nearby, in Ben Wheeler, is Roseland Plantation, open for tours, and offering facilities for meetings and retreats, along with bed & breakfast accomodations. The Texas Rose Horse Park is only a few miles east of Canton, on Highway 110, just off I-20 at Exit 548.
We shop in Canton not only during First Monday weekends, but at other times as well, frequenting the shops around the square downtown.
And the Paul Michael Company is a regular stop we make when shopping for home furnishings, any day of the year in Canton!
We enjoy all the restaurants in Canton, such as Juanita's on the south I-20 service road. But sometimes we don't need as much ... we had Hot Fudge Sundaes at Dairy Queen on I-20 just the other day, and often end up at Sonic further south off the interstate on Highway 19.
For more information, visit the First
Monday Trade Days web site and the Canton Chamber of Commerce. We also recommend a visit to the web site of the City of Canton.
While visiting Canton and the Tyler area, you may want to take other interesting day trips in several directions:
- Jacksonville - to the south of Tyler on U.S. 69
- Love's Lookout - beautiful 30-mile vista to the East
- Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens, south of Canton on Highway 19
- Gladewater - antique capitol of East Texas
- Longview - historic buildings, shopping, restaurants
- Marshall - Marshall Pottery, Railroad Museum, more
- Lake Tyler - swimming, boating, fishing, skiing close-in to Tyler
- Lake Palestine - boating, fishing, swimming, marinas, waterfront restaurants
- Toledo Bend Reservoir - boating, fishing, swimming, marinas, hiking, camping, golf, resorts, restaurants
- Grand Saline north of I20 on US80
- Brenham - College Station - Blue Bell Creamery, Antique Rose Emporium, Bluebonnet Trails, Bed and Breakfasts, vineyards, George Bush Presidential Library, Texas A&M University, more
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Tyler has convenient access to area lakes that provide boating, fishing, skiing, swimming, and other recreational possibilities. Tyler State Park, a short drive north of the city, provides overnight camping venues, mountain biking, picnicking, hiking and more. In addition, Lake Palestine and Lake Tyler provide opportunties for boating, skiing and fishing.
From world-class golf courses, flea markets, walking trails, cultural attractions, state parks, festivals, antique shopping, fall motoring and art museums, Canton, Tyler and the East Texas area has something
for everyone!
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