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29th Annual Shippensburg Corn
Festival August 29th, 2009 from 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM New for 2009: TBD
PLEASE, NO PETS. PETS NOT PERMITTED ON FESTIVAL GROUNDS.
WHAT
The 29th Annual Shippensburg Corn Festival will be held, rain or shine,
Saturday, August 29, 2009, from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, named as one of the
"Best Small Towns in America." The downtown main streets are closed to vehicular traffic and transformed into a huge street fair for the day. Crafts,
an antique car show, food booths, entertainment, and children’s activities offer something for everyone. There are more
than 300 crafts and antique vendors, selected by jury. Food booths feature corn in every available form. Entertainers
perform all day at three sites throughout the festival and there are a variety of strolling acts and demonstrations. All events
at the Festival are free, so bring the family for a day of fun. The Shippensburg Corn Festival is easily reached off Exits
24 or 29 of I-81 (old Exits 9 or 10).
PROJECTS
The Corn Festival, which was rated the best one-day festival in Pennsylvania
by the Pennsylvania Festivals Association, is presented by the Corn Festival Committee, a small group of dedicated volunteers.
All the monies generated are returned to the community for a variety of preservation and enhancement projects. Past
Festivals have supported the Historic District Survey; historic marker signs; sidewalk, fence, and lighting at the entrance
to the municipal parking lot; downtown period lighting; the restoration and landscaping of the Gazebo; iron wreath Christmas
decorations; trees and flowers for downtown; roof replacement of the oldest church in town; and preservation of the historic
Dykeman’s Spring Hatch House. The Corn Festival Committee also provides donations to the three local fire companies,
the public library, and various local organizations.
HISTORY
The original name of the Corn Festival Committee was the Shippensburg
Heritage and Recreation Planning Society, or SHARPS. In 1979 a log house, believed to be the oldest structure in town, was
razed to build the Sheetz store at the corner of King and Queen streets. SHARPS was comprised of a group of local residents
concerned with the alarming trend of destruction of many of the oldest buildings in their historic community. The initial
effort of the group focused on its "heritage" goal, promoting awareness and preservation of Shippensburg’s
rich architectural legacy that spans the 18th through 20th centuries. Members and friends of SHARPS underwrote a survey
by a preservation consultant in order to prepare a Historic District application for the National Register of Historic Places.
The cost of the survey was considerable and thus was born the Corn Festival in 1981, as a fundraiser for SHARPS. The idea
of a corn festival was chosen because corn was the area’s biggest crop.
MAKE IT A MINI VACATION
The Corn Festival is just the beginning. The entire
area surrounding Shippensburg, PA is beautiful and abounds with Things to Do and a lot of places to see. The Gettysburg
battlefield is only a short distance away and there are many historic buildings in Shippensburg, Chambersburg and the surrounding
towns and villages. Shippensburg University is only a few blocks away and you go right past Dickinson College on your way
to the Carlisle Fairgrounds. Harrisburg is the Pennsylvania State Capital and is closely bounded by other beautiful and historic
towns such as Mechanicsburg, Wormleysburg, Enola, Marysville, Churchtown and Middleton. Pennsylvania is the fourth largest
producer of wines in the United States and there are now more than 65 wineries in Pennsylvania.
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