ROBERTSDALE, Ala. — There are two words that will make most women scramble to their closets and get dreamy-eyed with anticipation.

A ball.

And let’s be honest, there are more than a few men who will look forward to the dancing, good food and seeing everybody all dressed up.

Baldwin County, as part of its bicentennial celebration, is holding a “Harvest Moon Ball” in conjunction with the Baldwin County Fair at the Baldwin County Coliseum Saturday, Sept. 19. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the music and dancing will begin at 7 p.m. The ball runs to midnight. Tickets for the ball will be available at the door and are $30 per person. $50 per couple, and $200 per table. Organizers say a table will seat eight.

“This will be like the North-South Ball we had last year,” explained John Jackson, the director of Baldwin County's Department of Archives and History.

Unlike the previous ball, where participants were asked to come in formal dress or clothed in a costume appropriate to the Civil War era, attendees are asked to dress formally or come in “period costume,” the dress their ancestors would have worn around the time of the founding of Baldwin County.

According to a flyer for the dance, that means, “Native American, Scottish, English, Italian, Greek, African American, Spanish, Irish, German, French, Single Tax Colony, Scandinavian, fishermen, Bohemian, agriculturalists.” If your ethnic group was a part of Baldwin County in the 19th century, you are welcome to wear that costume.

“The band will be “Un-Reconstructed,” said Jackson. “They play tunes that were popular in the 19th century.

The band is the same one that performed at last year’s ball, and the group’s leaders are adept in teaching period dances to the audience.

There will be a cash bar and “heavy hors d'oeuvre,” said Jackson. This is a change from last year, which featured a dinner.

“This is going to give people more of an opportunity to dance,” said Jackson.

Proceeds from the dance will go to the Bicentennial Park in Stockton.

Attendees will also have a chance to bid on items from the Swift/Coles house in Bon Secour. The items, Jackson says, are not “period correct.” He added that the items they wish to keep in the home would date from the 1800s to the 1920s.

That does not mean that the furniture and pictures do not have value, they just don’t match the selected time period of the home, Jackson said.

Proceeds from the auction will benefit the restoration of the historic home, he added.

The antiques will be part of a larger display of items pertaining to Baldwin County’s heritage during the fair.

“This is all going to be really nice,” said Jackson. “People should enjoy seeing this. I am hoping that people get a good look at our heritage.”