Oct 10, 2009, Boalsburg Heritage Festival :  Boalsburg's Birthday Party!

To celebrate historic Boalsburg's 201st birthday, Boalsburg will host a free street party on October 10, 2009, from Noon to 4 PM.

Photo: Persons from Boalsburg's and America's past and present will speak at the street party, including, right to left, the pioneer David Boal (portrayed by his descendant, Pittsburgh braodcaster Alan Boal), Christopher Columbus (Bruce Yoiung) and eighth generation Boal family member Christopher Lee.

Live music, a big birthday cake and appearances from many of the historical characters who have shaped Boalsburg's 201-year history will be on hand, as well as children's games, free wagon rides with a guided tour of historic Boalsburg and booths with displays from community groups. Then at 7:30 PM community members will gather for the Boalsburg Columbus Ball at the Boal Mansion Museum with contra-dancing, champagne and fine food.

“The weekend is about celebrating Boalsburg's 201 years of community," says Christopher Lee, a Boal descendant and chairman of the Boalsburg Heritage Festival.

Photo below: Youngsters cut out paper dolls of their heritage from the Boalsburg-Panorama Elementary Schools PTA while the Collins Family plays Irish music in the background at the festival.

There will be continual free wagon rides with a guide through historic Boalsburg. Stops include the village square (Church and Main Streets), the Boalsburg Heritage Museum (East Main Street, open 1-4 PM) and the Columbus Chapel and Boal Mansion Museum (300 Old Boalsburg Road) where guided tours of the famous Columbus Chapel and the remarkably intact 1789 Boal Mansion will be offered (open Noon to 5 PM). The Boals, a leading Pennsylvania family, have lived at the Boal Mansion for 221 years and the furnishing, tools and weapons of nine generations are still on display at the Boal Mansion Museum, including remarkable European art and artifacts as well.

The village festival is free. For more information on Boalsburg for community groups wishing to join in presenting their activities at the festival, contact the Boal Mansion Museum at 814-466-6210 or office@boalmuseum.com or PO Box 116, Boalsburg PA 16827.

Performance Schedule for October 11, 2008, in the Boalsburg Village Square:

(2009 Schedule will be posted later)

Noon: Welcome to Boalsburg by its founder, the 1789 pioneer David Boal (Alan Boal, his descendant, in period dress). Note: historical persons will wander through the festival throughout the afternoon. See below for details:

12:00-12:50:  Tussey Mountain Moonshiners, bluegrass and traditional

1:00 - 1:30: Dirty Blonde, rock and blues

1:30: Boalsburg 200th Birthday cake from Tracy Coleman of For Heaven Cakes.

     1) Blessing of the cake by Rev. Ann Graves of St. John's UCC of Boalsburg.

     2) Song/s by Boalsburg Elementary School Fifth Graders; Lisa Bevan, Directing.

     3) Pageant of historical characters from Boalsburg's 200 year history, including national TV actor Charles Dumas as Judge George Boal (1796-1867) a founder of Penn State University.

2:00 - 2:20: Synchronicity, original rock

2:20 - 2:45:  Dirty Blonde, blues and rock

3:00- 4:00: Gypsy Switch (from State College High School), classic and modern rock

Historical characters appearing throughout the afternoon (and even more at the Boalsburg 200th Birthday Ball at the Boal Mansion in the evening of October 11):

Admiral Christopher Columbus (d. 1506) in 2008 – Bruce Young

The pioneer David Boal in 1789 – Alan Boal

Hon. George Boal (1796 –1867) in 1865 – Charles Dumas

Mrs. Elizabeth Myers, First Memorial Day in 1864 – Bonnie Barry

Malvina Buttles Boal, (1840-1927), c. 1875 – Janice Sherer

Mathilde de L. Boal (1871 – 1952) in 1905 – Daysi Boal

Theodore Davis Boal (1867 – 1938) in 1916 – Phil Sauerlender

Christopher Lee in 2038 – Christopher Lee

A Toast to Two Centuries of Community – Christopher Lee

 

Birthday cake courtesy of Tracy Coleman, For Heaven Cakes, Boalsburg