Cherry Fair celebrates, preserves Pennsylvania German history

The Cherry Fair, a Schaefferstown festival dating back to the 1700s, celebrates late 18th- and early 19th-century history.

Traditionally made artisan items are displayed and sold, Revolutionary War encampments share their history, and era-accurate attire is worn by volunteers and guests alike.

It also serves as a fundraiser for Historic Schaefferstown, benefiting the preservation and restoration of historic sites the Alexander Schaeffer Farm (the site of the fair), the Gemberling-Rex House, and the Brendle Museum.

For the 2026 fair on Saturday, June 27, Historic Schaefferstown vice president Brenda Morrow said, there were 726 attendees, not counting volunteers and vendors. Though lower than in some past years, Morrow said turnout was fair for the weather, with intermittent drizzle throughout the day.

There were over 50 artisans, presenters, and demonstrators, she said, and around 90 volunteers. The Cherry Fair, she said, celebrates the Pennsylvania-German heritage of Schaefferstown.

“The idea is that so many of us have a Pennsylvania German background and what’s unique about this area is a lot of people that live here don’t ever leave, so it’s giving a picture of the culture that used to live here and reminding us of the importance of saving that,” said Morrow. “This is a beautiful, beautiful farm and we’d like to keep it that way and remind people of the importance of farming and community and all of those aspects of it.”

The nonprofit aims to restore buildings to their original condition, including authentic materials, and, where applicable, processes. President Lynn Wenger said this means improvements can seem slow to occur from the outside.

“What we try do first of all is we try to save as much of the original fabric of the building as we can,” said Wenger. “Determining that takes a little time and effort and some knowledge. Then we decide what we’re keeping, and what we’re not. Then the idea is to reproduce, if we have to, an exact replica. In the house over here, some of the trim that you see if you walk through there has been reproduced from the original, so we wind up with something that looks authentic, and whenever possible we use hand tools.”

The Alexander Schaeffer Farm, the site of the Cherry Fair since the 1980s, contains an 18th-century National Historic Landmark house.

Wenger explained that, recently, there was plaster coming off the walls in the house. To restore it, he said, they combined clay with straw for the first coat, followed with a lime paint sourced from Lancaster County.

The nonprofit also recently completed major renovations at the Gemberling-Rex house, an 18th-century tavern on the National Register of Historic Homes. On Oct. 3, Morrow said, they are hosting a tavern night using the building as a tavern for the first time in over a century.

Historic Schaefferstown runs the museum, hosts workshops and welcomes speakers, and holds events throughout the year to educate about history and share historic sites with the public.

For more information on Historic Schaefferstown, visit the Brendle Museum any Tuesday from 1 to 4 p.m. or on the first Sunday of the month.

Cherry Fair Photo Reel