Friends of Barclay Farmstead and Cherry Hill Township are teaming up to host the first Apple Palooza on Sunday, Oct. 1, from 1 to 4 p.m. at the farmstead.
Residents will find apples galore if they visit Cherry Hill Township’s historic Barclay Farmstead on Oct. 1
Friends of Barclay Farmstead and the township are teaming to put on a new event named Apple Palooza. The inaugural event will take place at Barclay Farmstead from 1 to 4 p.m.
Friends of Barclay Farmstead opens the farmstead for tours the first Sunday of every month from March through November. Apple Palooza will be an expanded version of Friends’ first Sunday event.
Peggy McDaniels, chair of the Friends of Barclay Farmstead board, said Apple Palooza is a great way for residents who have never been to the farmstead to check it out.
“We decided we really wanted to find a way for people to see where we are,” McDaniels said. “We decided to make this a bigger event.”
Apples play a role in the history of Barclay Farmstead. A Quaker farmer named Joseph Thorn built the farmhouse in 1816. McDaniels said families who lived in the house during the 1800s grew apples on the property. Today, the farmstead still has an apple orchard with multiple trees.
“We have a wonderful orchard,” McDaniels said. “It was planted years ago. It has been maintained by somebody who has been active with us.”
Friends wanted to partner with Cherry Hill Township for the event. Township officials felt Apple Palooza was a good complement to the township’s existing Harvest Festival and decided to support the Friends.
“We felt like it was a good opportunity to work with the Friends,” township director of communications Bridget Palmer said. “It’s everything we look for in an event.”
To differentiate Apple Palooza from Harvest Festival, organizers decided to include different types of activities. One of the highlights of the event is an apple pie contest, where bakers can enter their apple pie for a chance to win a dinner for two at The Farmhouse restaurant on Kresson Road in Cherry Hill.
There will also be plenty of activities for kids, including apple-themed crafts and games. Springdale Farm will be providing numerous food dishes for the event, and visitors can also create their own caramel apples. Friends also plans to hand out a small booklet on apples and the farmstead’s apple orchard. Joey D’s Doo Wop Band will provide music throughout the afternoon.
“The apple theme is different,” Palmer said of the event. “There’s more opportunity for hands-on crafts for the kids. The apple pie contest is unique. And it’s a different location.”
As it always does on the first Sunday of October, Friends will open Barclay Farmstead for tours. There is also a plan to open the forge barn on the property, a building normally not open to the public on first Sundays.
“We just want people to see the house and see what’s available,” McDaniels said.
Apple Palooza is free and open to the public. To participate in the apple pie contest, entrants must complete a registration form and return it with a payment of $10 to the Cherry Hill Recreation Department by Wednesday, Sept. 27. To download the registration form and for more information, visit www.cherryhill-nj.com/1081/Apple-Palooza.
