Hamburg Area Historical Society

06/13/2026

Good morning! Yesterday on a hot, sticky morning a group of historical society members traveled along the Tulpehocken Creek in Wyomissing to pay a visit to the Nicholas Stoltzfus Homestead. Our very knowledgeable and excellent tour guide was Elam Stoltzfus who is a 9th generation descendant of Nicholas’. The one acre property consists of a stone-built English colonial-style house built in the early-1700s and a replica Sweitzer barn built in 2011 (the original barn on the property had been torn down).

Today the historical house is restored to accommodate tours, special educational programs, showcase Berks County Amish history and to experience colonial life style from the 1700's.

The Homestead holds an auction in May to support their organization as well as sponsoring a Berks County Amish Historical Tour in October. Information is available on their website for either event if you are interested. You will be very surprised (as we were) by the amount of Amish living in our neck of Penn’s woods in the mid to late 1700s. Many of us knew about the massacres of Amish settlers in western Berks, but there was one in Windsor Township too. Elam will be our speaker for the September 3 meeting, and his program will be about the Amish settlements here in the Hamburg area.

A great time was had by all! Thanks Elam and the Nicholas Stoltzfus Homestead for preserving their past for future generations!!

See their website www.nicholasstoltzfus.com for more information.

Nicholas Stoltzfus Homestead

06/06/2026

Last night on Hawk Hill, the Class of 2026 walked the stage in front of family, friends, and faculty to receive their diplomas, signaling the end of an era and the beginning of an exciting new chapter in their lives. On behalf of the Hamburg Area Historical Society, congratulations to the newest alumni of the Hamburg Area School District!!

As per our tradition we take a stroll down memory lane at the graduates from the 6s- 1946, ‘56, ‘66, ‘76, ‘86, ‘96, and 2006 (apologies again to the Perry graduates as well as the 2016 class).

We leave you with the words of Henry David Thoreau: “Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.”

Congratulations to the Class of 2026!!

Wherever life leads, keep preserving our past for the future!!

www.hamburgpahistoricalsociety.org

Credits: Hamburg and Hamburg Area pinnacles, the Hamburg Item

06/05/2026

Looking for a way to celebrate America’s 250th and a great local tradition? Make plans to come to Shoemakersville tomorrow June 6 at 10 AM for the 75th Children’s Fair and Parade!! I copied the following text from the Shoemakersville History and Community page as they can describe this event far better than I could.

“The celebration continues this Saturday, June 6th, at Shoemakersville Park with the Children's Fair and Parade!
We invite everyone to come out, line the parade route, and spend the day celebrating with friends, family, and neighbors. The forecast is calling for beautiful weather, making it the perfect day to enjoy everything the fair has to offer, including:
🎡 Fun games for all ages
🍔 Delicious food
🐐 Petting zoo
🐴 Pony rides
🎭 Special guests and entertainment
🎉 And so much more!

This fair has been bringing our community together for 75 years, and there is no better way to honor that tradition than by celebrating alongside the people who make Shoemakersville such a wonderful place to call home.

We look forward to seeing you at the parade and fair as we celebrate our nation's history, our community's traditions, and the spirit that brings us all together.
Happy 250th Birthday, America, and Happy 75th Anniversary to the Shoemakersville Children's Fair!”

The articles and photos are from the Hamburg Item beginning with the announcement of the plans for the very first Children’s Fair and Parade in 1952 to the the mid 90s (we didn’t have any Items beyond 2002 to search).

Congratulations to the Borough of Shoemakersville and the Recreation Board for 75 years of celebrating the children in our communities!!

From little on up, keep preserving our past for the future!!

Credits: Shoemakersville History and Community page; the Hamburg Item

www.hamburgpahistoricalsociety.org

06/04/2026

Our neighbors to the south doing a “magical” job of preserving local history and having fun doing so!! Check out this popular event and the corresponding exhibits and demonstrations taking place at the lockhouse!!

We are so excited about this tour! There are still seats available for 12:00 noon but filling fast! Contact 610.781.4012 to reserve your seats!

06/03/2026

Hello! Happy June! Graduation will be here on Friday for the Hamburg Area School District. We’ll have our annual post celebrating our seniors this year and those alumni that graduated with a “6” at the end of your graduation year.

But a few weeks ago someone had asked for a building update post. So here it goes…
Work is ongoing, not as fast as we would like, but yes, things have happened and continue to move forward. We have electric service in the building, and the natural gas has been connected as well. The weather finally made it possible to put the storm drainage items in the ground. A retaining wall was poured on the north end of the building next to the garage door. We are (im)patiently waiting for the MetEd to move the support wire at the north end too.

There are other things happening behind the scenes. Our electrician, plumber, and HVAC contractors have been doing preliminary work and are ready to go. In the weeks and months to come we will have more updates to share.

And, sorry, there is no tentative opening date to share with you. 🙁

We do look forward to sharing this new museum with you in the future. 😊

Finally, with school out for summer, so are we. That means we are no longer meeting at the high school till September. But we do have a field trip lined up for Friday June 12 at 10 AM at the Nicholas Stoltzfus Homestead, 1700 Tulpehocken Road, Wyomissing. The tour lasts for two hours, and is by donation to the ongoing work at the homestead. Any one is welcome to join us. And if you are interested in carpooling, please meet at Hamburg Bible Church, 731 Port Clinton Avenue, at 9 AM.

There is also our annual picnic in July. More information to follow.

No matter how quickly or slowly the building goes up, we’ll keep preserving our past for the future.

www.hamburgpahistoricalsociety.org

05/28/2026

Sharing this long post from Memorial Day 2017. If you are a fan of the fictitious movie “Saving Private Ryan”, you will quickly realize that we had a real life version of that movie in our neck of the woods in the Wentzel family story.

Thanks for reading till the end if you make it that far! Also I’d like to announce that on June 12 at 10 AM we will be taking a tour of the Nicholas Stoltzfus Homestead, 1700 Tulpehocken Road, Wyomissing. More details in a future post.

Because fact sometimes mirrors fiction, keep preserving our past for the future!!

www.hamburgpahistoricalsociety.org

05/25/2026

Have a thankful Memorial Day!! For the past several years we have mentioned changing from “happy” to “thankful” as we remember the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country.

We are thankful for their lives and their service.

We are thankful for the Gold Star families who must go on without their loved ones.

Today, we remember two men from our area who gave their lives while serving in the US Army in Korea: PFC Myron Hartman and CPL James Reider. We also remember their families and loved ones who were left behind.

Because freedom is never free, we remember. Then let us live lives worthy of all our nation’s fallen heroes.

Have a thankful Memorial Day.

Keep preserving our past for the future.

www.hamburgpahistoricalsociety.org

Credits: honor365.org and koreanwar.org