This weekend’s Gwynn’s Island Festival will celebrate the island’s being connected to the mainland of Mathews County for eight decades.

The program of the 71st annual festival, which will kick off at 9 a.m. Saturday on the Gwynn’s Island Civic Center grounds, will provide the history of crossing Milford Haven by means of a skiff, a lighter, barge, ferry and finally the bridge.

“Our bridge was built in 1939 and is one of the oldest moveable bridges in Virginia,” said festival chair Jan Bassett. “Connecting Gwynn’s Island to the mainland at Cricket Hill enabled more people to experience the beauty, the community and the people of the island.”

The celebration will begin Friday with the festival’s annual Famous Chicken Dinner. The drive-thru starts at 4:30 p.m. and eat-in will take place at the civic center from 5-7. Tickets are $12 and children 10 and under are $5. Tickets for the dinner are available at the door, at the Mathe...