Shoppers visit vendor booths May 18 at the Historic Longview Farmers Market. (Les Hassell/Longview News-Journal Photo)

There’s a social scene every Saturday morning in Longview at a parking lot off Cotton Street, and it’s been going strong and growing steadily for almost 14 years.

So, what’s drawing people out of bed to a patch of asphalt behind Silver Grizzly Espresso? The Historic Longview Farmers Market, a semi-circle of carefully vetted farm stands hocking fresh produce, small-batch coffee roasters with an inside track to the best Guatemalan beans, ethically raised meats, artisanal baked goods, local crafts and live music.

Beginning with the spring produce harvest around April and ending in late November with the first signs of winter, anywhere from 20 to 30 stalls are set up in downtown Longview each Saturday morning.

“The community has just completely embraced the market,” said Lynette Goodson, the market’s founder.

“When we open, people are so happy,” Goodson said. “They say they’ve missed us during the winter, and there’s a lot of gratitude — not only to us for running it, but to the vendors, because people appreciate the produce grown ethically. They appreciate the people who make the cookies and the pound cakes and the cinnamon rolls. They appreciate all the effort that goes in.”

Goodson, along with the market’s board members, personally inspects all vendors’ operations to ensure that visitors get the best produce and products available in East Texas, she said.

“It’s a whole morning event,” Goodson said, and shoppers don’t have to limit themselves to fruits and veggies if they arrive hungry. The market comes stocked with other vendors selling prepared food, ranging from Mediterranean to Indian and vegetarian options depending on the day.

“I was looking forward to the market all winter,” said Emily McCarty, a Longview resident. “I love getting flowers from Tracy’s Field and Flowers booth and then end my morning with a pastry from Sola Bread and coffee from Silver Grizzly.”

Goodson started the market in 2010 after moving from Southern California to Longview in 2004.

“We probably had like seven vendors then,” she said. “Now, we’re maxed out on space.”

And when times got tough for Goodson in 2022 following an injury that disabled her for three months, she said the market provided more than food; it became a source of support.

“The people in Longview are some of the nicest I’ve met anywhere,” said Goodson, who used to travel internationally for her job in marketing. “When I was able to go back to the farmers market after the injury, people hugged me, and they told me they’d been praying for me. What a lovely, lovely community.”

The Historic Longview Farmers Market is at 105 W. Cotton Street. Stalls are open from 7:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. every Saturday until Thanksgiving.

To find out which vendors will attend the event each weekend — and to see whether the event is disrupted by weather — follow the market’s Facebook page.