The weekend of Saturday, Oct. 11 and Sunday, Oct. 12, the historical Joanna Furnace was home to the Hay Creek Valley Historical Association’s Apple Festival.
The Hay Creek Apple festival is one of three major festivals Joanna Furnace hosts. The other festivals include the fall festival in September and Christmas festival in December.
The Hay Creek Apple festival focuses not only on the delicious apples, but also on family fun. Open to all ages, the festival ran from 7 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday, rain or shine. With a parking fee of just a donation, the event featured a large array of activities for the entire family to enjoy. These features include the flea market, along with wagon and hayrides, pony rides, a petting zoo, and pumpkin paintings.
The history buff in the family was not to be disappointed. With the sawmill in demonstration all day, along with volunteers placed within the furnace eager to share the interesting stories of the site with people who visited.
The fresh apple cider and mouthwatering desserts lined the entrance of the event, a feature most everyone in attendance chose to indulge in. The smell of pies, tarts, and freshly pressed cider filled the surrounding areas. After walking past the petting zoo, the ever popular open flea market lined both sides of the ave, where booths of goodies were available for sale.
This particular event has been taking place since 1982. Joanna Furnace is continuing to grow and looking to purchase 36 additional acres to the current 26 acres of land. The preparation for the apple festival began as soon as the Fall Festival (which takes place in September) ended. Over 1500 volunteers make up the furnace’s staff, providing maximum efforts to ensure an enjoyable experience for all. Charles Jacob, long-time volunteer of Joanna Furnace, was just one of the 650-700 estimated volunteers participating that particular day.
Although the event was formed to benefit the community and all the families who attended, the proceeds of the festival go directly to Joanna Furnace, which is constantly restoring its grounds and equipment. Hay Creek Apple Festival “bring the community together and continues to educate on how things were done in the old days,” Jacob said. Such success in this festival really brings a sense of togetherness to those involved in the event while mixing a little past with a little present.
Amanda Galanti and Richie Ricciardi are students at Alvernia University.