2012 Celebration of Pennsylvania German Food, Crafts and Farm Life
Saturday, October 6, 10:00 AM–3:00 PM

Adults: $8
Children 7 - 12: $4
Children 6 and under: Free

No advance tickets required. For more information, call (717) 464-4438 or e-mail .

About the Festival 

What do iron, rye straw and butter have in common? They were all important in the life of the first settlers to Lancaster County in 1711. These three commodities were critical to survival and subsequent growth of the first European settlement in the county.

Join us at the Snitz Fest as we celebrate the agricultural heritage that is the foundation Lancaster County. The first European immigrants here were Mennonite farmers who cleared the land, worked it and created the breadbasket we know today. The Snitz Fest celebrates the hard work and values instilled in us by those first immigrants.

Iron was used to make cooking pots, rifles for hunting, hinges for doors, and parts for farming equipment. Rye straw, which is bitter to rodents and bugs, was used for filling mattresses to sleep on, baskets and insulation in the walls of houses. Butter, made from cream, was not only eaten but used as a trading commodity for things like glass and paper.

Learn more about life before electricity, cell phones, iPods and tractors from our master craftsmen and women, dressed in costumes representing authentic 18th and 19th-century Pennsylvania German dress.

All Seasons Catering will provide delicious traditional Lancaster County foods for purchase in our food tent. As always, Herr House smoked sausage sandwiches will be available. 

Join us at the 1719 Hans Herr House for a day filled with hands-on activities:

• Threshing
• Laundry
• Baking in an outdoor oven
• Making corn husk dolls
• Loom weaving
• Decorative arts
• Making shingles  
• Making shoes
• Cooking over a wood fire
• Blacksmithing
• Quilting
• Candle Making   
• Heckling Flax
• Churning Butter
• Making Sausage