Wondering why we love the Apple butter festival?
Back in the towns of the United States, a country festival has been celebrated for forty years. It is a unique festival, celebrating the spirit of farmers. I am talking about the “Apple Butter Festival” celebrated every year with enthusiasm and warmth. The warm weather of October greets the Apple Butter Festival with sweet and fruity vibes. This festival is celebrated annually, usually on the first weekend of October.
The Apple Butter Festival is a country festival celebrated in Kimmswick, Berkeley Springs, New York’s Warwick and Hilton, Pennsylvania’s Franklin, and Iowa’s Woodbine.
Continue reading more to know why one should participate once in celebrating this festival of the West.
Origin of Apple Butter Festival
While digging back in the history of this festival, I got to know some fascinating historical facts. The apple butter festival is a gift of farmers that pioneered the historical society of America.
In 1976 the American countries were looking behind and researching history. They were tracing the origins of things that might be of significance to the present. This is how they stumbled upon the idea of celebrating their skills of harvesting, that is when the Apple Butter Festival came into existence.
Kimmswick’s apple butter festival is the oldest one. The Historical Society of Kimmswick gathers together to peel and prepare the apples. Early, before dawn, on each day of the festival, the apples are cooked on the fire, and the stirring continues for seven to eight hours until the spread is thick enough to be sealed in jars.
The village of Grand Rapids had a rich history of farming. The former Grand Rapids mayor, Jim Carter, decided to start a fest to showcase their farm life to other citizens.
8 Things to Know about Apple Butter Festival
1. Making of apple butter
The making of Apple butter is a unique task in itself; the farmers used to crush the apples for cider as those apples weren’t hybrid as they are now. They then boil those crushed apples with cider and sugar to make a thick, sweet, fruit butter with perfect consistency.
The star of the show, apple butter, is blended using a unique procedure and takes hours to reach perfection. Duration plays a vital role in perfecting its taste. After this, the sweet blend is filled in air-tight containers.
In addition to its mind-blowing taste, this was an economical way to turn the apple crop into products that can be canned for long term use.
But it consumed too much time and labor. Labor was required on a large scale. But the process was made easier when everyone came together to lend a hand.
In other words, it was a perfect activity to bring the community together and produce an old-time treat. The city hall fills with sweet fragrance during this time of year.
2. Building Community love
This festival positively promotes communal love and peace with its celebration. The festival brings together the people of different communities. Starting from picking up the right apples until the thick butter is cooked, every family works together. They all treat this festival with the utmost respect and put their efforts into making the best of it.
This community festival is mainly celebrated in the town halls of the regions. The halls get crowded with families from nearby and their regions to participate in the making of Apple butter. They get to know one another better while working under the same roof. This creates a warm and festive atmosphere of communal harmony.
3. Visitors
People from nearby cities and towns come together to witness the celebration and taste the delicacies.
Every year there are almost 30,000 people who come together to enjoy the apple butter festival in the streets of Warwick, New York. The Wenatchee in Washington attracts more than 100 000 people every year to celebrate this festival. Even the Historical Society of Grand Rapids mentions the annual Applebutter Fest as an event that brings people together.
Anyone can volunteer to be a part of the Apple Butter Festival and help in hosting it. The team spirit is unbeatable, and you are welcomed warmly.
Most of October every year is filled by the excitement and anticipation of the Apple butter festival. This festival takes place on the weekends of October, and prior to that, the whole month is full of joy and excitement.
4. Sale of Apple butter
Each year, countless jars of apple butter are sold during the festival. The sales are never disappointing, as the crowd buys every last jar of apple butter. Customers stock the apple butter until it is festival time again the next year. Visitors store their favorite candies, and others, especially hand made goodies are quite challenging to buy in the usual markets.
The fun part is that they buy these jars for storage purposes and gift them to their loved ones because anyone with a sweet tooth would love to taste this mostly hand made jar of a treat made by immense love.
The good part is that these are safe to be used after months of their manufacturing, so there is no fear of spoiling its taste.
5. Attractions for kids at the Apple butter festival
Since the early ages of celebrating this festival, it has been a tradition to decorate the town and prepare the park for the visitors. Earlier, the parks only used to have few games and rides for kids, but now with each passing year, celebrating has improved. We are getting more variety every year.
There are many attractions every year, and hence it is popular among the kids. The train, mini rides, and foil balloon rides are some of the best things for kids to enjoy. The Ferris Wheel, other rides as well as other games are the major attractions for kids.
Every year apple butter festival gives a platform to many entertainers like jugglers and puppeteers. The puppet shows are based on stories with moral values.
You can also spot various costumed storytellers reciting stories to children. The stories are based on cultural education. Children adore the clowns who make balloon animals, paint faces, and apply temporary hair color.
Kids are drawn to the apple festival due to this entertainment. To read more about this, click here the Apple butter festival and kids.
6. Mouthwatering food items
The apple butter festival is known for the delicious apple butter produced locally in the towns. Still, the taste of the festival goes beyond that. There are hundreds of food stalls like apple pies, muffins, chocolates, and cookies for visitors to munch on. Freshly made waffles, cloud bread, garlic bread, and many other times to savor.
7. Entertainment
The sweet, fruity aroma of the apple butter wafts through the town and gets people excited. The city is adorned with lights and festoons.
Country music, along with cultural dances, attracts hoards of families. The city walk is lined with 500 to 600 stalls of food and handicrafts. People showcase their art and crafts for people to buy. The booths not only consist of country crafters selling their already made pieces of art and sculptures, but they also showcase on-site learning of a few art pieces. These attractive stalls are crowd-pullers and add lively charm to the festival.
The Apple Fest also exposes people to various apple-related activities such as cider pressing, apple arts and crafts, stenciling, displays of apple varieties, and historical artifacts associated with the harvesting and processing of apples.
All in all, upbeat music, a vibrant display of culture, and delicious food make the festival a must-visit.
8. Places where it’s celebrated
Apple butter festival is a country festival and is mainly celebrated in small towns of the United States. Here are some of the best places where you can visit to celebrate this festival.
It is usually celebrated in Indiana, Arkansas, Maine, Kentucky, Maryland, California, Ohio, and some more places along with the city of Kimmswick.
And to read more about how the Apple butter festival is celebrated in all of these regions, you can read a list of places where the apple butter festival is celebrated.
Apple butter festival is an important festival that not only focuses on the celebration but also gives respect to the farming families. The apple butter-making process is a subtle reminder of the pioneers who started and supported this fest.
This festival not only teaches them to respect their dead but also centers around the significance of harmony among people. It shows how everyone can live happily together and enjoy little events of life.
The unity prevailing in the whole festival is remarkable. This festival is guaranteed to be worth your time and effort. The vibrant atmosphere and cheerfulness is a pleasant experience.
This festival is a bucket-list-worthy item waiting to be ticked off. And I am sure that after reading this article, you would also be interested in attending this festival.
I hope this article gave you enough insights about the apple butter festival and you would attend it at least once in your life.
Comment below if you’ve been a part of this exciting festival or looking forward to it.
Last Updated on by Saket Kumar