Gretna Green the marriage ceremony. The blacksmiths in Gretna became known as "anvil priests", culminating with Richard Rennison, who performed 5,147 ceremonies. The local blacksmith and his anvil became lasting symbols of Gretna Green weddings. Two in particular, The Old Blacksmith's Shop, built around 1712, and Gretna Hall Blacksmith's Shop (1710) became, in popular folklore at least, the focal tourist points for the marriage trade. The Old Blacksmith's Shop opened to the public as a visitor attraction as early as 1887. Victorian chronicler Robert Smith Surtees described Gretna Green at length in his 1848 "New Monthly Magazine" serial, "The Richest Commoner in
Gretna Heritage Festival Gretna Heritage Festival Gretna Heritage Festival is a culture festival in Gretna, Louisiana. The festival offers food, arts & crafts, rides & games, and music. The festival started in 1994 as a small community event. It has since grown to one of the largest festivals in Jefferson Parish and is also listed as one of Newcomers report a new kind of musical experience unavailable elsewhere in other genres of music. Past headline acts have included Travis Tritt, The Beach Boys, Charlie Daniels, Blue Öyster Cult, Joe Diffie, David Allan Coe, Chicago, Brooks & Dunn, and Ricky Van Shelton. Celebrating 15