The Blue Lake Chamber of Commerce marked its 40th anniversary at the 41st annual Annie and Mary Day celebration Sunday in Blue Lake.

There are two theories that explain who the festival’s namesakes were. Jean Leavitt of the Blue Lake Museum said one idea is that Annie and Mary were secretaries for a railroad that at one time ran from Arcata to Korbel. Currently, the station is the Blue Lake Museum. The other idea is that it was a made-up nickname for the railroad. The women’s images were used as a logo for the train ride in the 1970s.

Blue Lake Chamber of Commerce board member Karen Barnes said Annie and Mary Day is to “celebrate living in Blue Lake.”

“It’s a wonderful community event, and people can come and see what a wonderful little town this is.”

Barnes noted that the day’s events were a “great partnership” between local groups and the Chamber of Commerce. The day started with a parade, car show and a craft fair, and ended with a pageant.

Most of the cars involved in the parade were several decades old. One Arcata police car was a 1957 Ford Fairlane 500, and the Blue Lake Fire Department displayed a 1929 Chevrolet fire engine. Blue Lake Fire Chief Ray Stonebarger said the fire department also has a 1972 model that is still functioning, in case of emergencies.

The car show filled Railroad Avenue with older Fords and Chevrolets. The winner of the show was Van Cook with his 1968 Pontiac Firebird.

At the end of the road, at Blue Lake City Hall, the fair took place. Items for sale included jewelry, wax hands, cacti, luggage and model airplanes made of aluminum cans. The creator of the airplanes, longtime Fortuna resident Neal Johnson, said they are a model of an Army training plane from the 1930s.

After the car show, masks were handed out for Dell’Arte’s masked pageant. Attendees of the theater group’s Mad River Festival, which ends next week, participated by making and donating masks to the pageant.

Meghan Vogel, the development director for Dell’Arte, carried a large bag full of masks and was quickly surrounded by children hoping to grab one. “We’re handing out masks from the mobile mask unit,” she said, “just so everyone can be a part.”

The Humboldt Folklife Society began its eight-day Folklife Festival the night before Annie and Mary Day. Its members performed at yesterday’s festivities. Jen Rice of the Humboldt Folklife Society said she loves participating in Annie and Mary Day because “it brings together people of all ages and interests, which is perfect to bring together with Blue Lake.”

(Ashley Mackin can be reached at amackin@eurekareporter.com, or at 707-269-7436.) Monday, July, 21, 2008