NATIONAL APPLE MUSEUM OPENS Joyce Bupp York Co. Correspondent BIGLERVILLE, Adams Co. If an apple a day keeps the doctor away, a new Adams County museum can look forward to a long and fruitful existence. More than a thousand visitors have already enjoyed the educa tional and historic displays at The National Apple Museum since it opened to the public on Memorial Day weekend. Housed in a restored, 143-year-old barn on West Hanover Street, the museum is a tribute to Adams County’s nationally-known fruit industry and to the community spirit of this quiet town in the heart of orchard country. Scotch-Irish pioneers settled and subsistence farmed these roll ing lands, once favored hunting grounds for local Indian tribes. German settlers followed, plant ing the early rootstocks of what would blossom into today’s thriv ing acres of fruit trees. Railroads made fresh fruit ship ping by Biglerville growers a real ity of the early 1900’s, and sup porting industries - processing and storage facilities, container manu facturing, trucking - grew with the town. Celebration of the nation’s 1976 Bicentennial “awakened” Biglerville residents to a renewed awareness of the area’s history and heritage, believes Dr. Bruce Beacher, president of the Bigler ville Historical and Preservation Society. “There was a groundswell of support for preserving that herit age,” says the retired federal soil scientist, whose work with the United States Department of Agri culture and land grant universities gave him a background and inter est in the area’s fruit production uniqueness. Efforts focused initially on reorganizing the Biglerville band, Blglervllle Historical Society president Dr. Bruce Beach* er admires a 1750 patent deed, on sheepskin, from the Penn family to William Carson for a tract of land near Blglervllle. This is how the barn appeared when it was donated to the Society for restoration and museum use. National Apple Museum Opens first established about the 1880 s. / Town musicians of ail ages turned out with their instruments, and today the Apple Core Orchestra and Jazz Bands include more than 100 men and women, from teens to retirees. The Historical and Preservation Society was officially chartered in 1981 promptly setting a long-term goal; establishing an apple museum as a tribute to the area’s agricultural heritage. When Biglerville’s railroad station became available for their use in 1986, the Society, with assistance from the Inland Container Corpo ration, began restoration of the small, but historic, building. But as deeds, documents, photos, heirloom equipment, and assorted bits and pieces of Biglcr villc’s past came into the Socie ty’s possession, it soon became apparent that the railroad station was too small to house the historic collections. “We decided we needed a bam,” relates Violet Ondck, now the National Apple Museum’s chairman. “1 saw the owner of this bam in a restaurant one day and asked him if he might consider giving it for our museum.” Two days later, local building contrac tors Clair and Marie Ditzler offered the 92’x50’, pre-Civil War bank bam for the Society’s use. According to Dr. Beacher, the tract on which the museum bam is located is a historic one. Holder of the original land warrant was one Ephraim Johnson. Valentine Sil lick, builder of the bam, acquired title in 1854. Slavery was prac ticed on the tract until the practice was abolished and slaves freed. When the Society accepted the deed to the bam and surrounding property, one horse was housed in the barn’s lower level. Years ago, it had been home to a herd of dairy cattle. Like most aging bams, it had acquired layers of cobwebs and dust, and an assortment of stored miscellaneous items. The National Apple Museum at Blglervilie Is a tribute to Adams County’s fruit* production History and heritage. National Apple Museum chairman Violet Ondek Joins the mannikins on display In the gallery’s reproduction of a 1857 kitchen. An outgoing, enthusiastic indi vidual, Violet’s background a*s a home builder gave her-contracting background, but no hands-on expertise on barn restoration. Nevertheless, she and a dedicated core of supporters and volunteers set up a four-year building pro gram and dug in to the monumen tal task. They began a mere onj year ago - opening three years ahead of the original plan. Both chairman Ondek and society president Dr. Beacher have unending praise for the community support and help of numerous individuals who wholeheartedly donated time, physical and financial support. “It’s just a miracle we have this,” Violet Ondek marvels, recounting how the remodeling was completed far ahead of sche dule. “TTie weather cooperated, and we would get concrete within an hour of the time calle.d.” Biglerville Fire Company hosed down the barn’s.in tenor of old hay residue, the Ditzlers offered ideas and help, and Musseiman’s contri buted the lighting. One comer of the bam had to be raised and a whole new concrete foundation installed. Every origi nal support post was moved and set on new concrete as well. A crew of Lancaster County Amish builders assisted with some of the barn’s major restructure work. “We used all the wood that was originally here - but just put it back together a little differently,’’ chuckles Violet. Complete excavation of the ground floor allowed for drainage installations and concrete flooring finished with a plastic sealer. Area resident Bill Smith painstakingly repointed the beautiful field stone central supporting wall of the low er level, now a focal point of the Main Hall. Oak plank flooring replaced the original floorboards in the barn’s upper level. A com plete new wiring system, along with numerous other measures, brought jhe bam into compliance with state standards for fire and building codes. Part of the roof was replaced, as needed and finances would allow. “We only redid what we had to do, but we tried to do it all well,” adds the museum chairman. “We did not want to go into debt. With the help of so many people, we’ve been able to avoid borrowing.” Visitors enter the National Apple Museum via a reception area featuring apple and area memorabilia. Adjacent is the Main Hall, suitable for auditorium and reception use, including a stage where the popular Bigler ville Band rehearses weekly and presents frequent concerts. Adams County Fruit Growers Association has enthusiastically supported the museum’s estab lishment, including donation of a television and video cassette V&mesicad Uncaster Farming, Saturday, July 14,1990-B3 recorder for use in the “Apple Theatre.” Featured presentation is “Apples, Apples, Apples,” an 18-minute video produced by the Pennsylvania Apple Marketing Board. At the foot of the open stairway to the upper gallery is the Book of Memories, a corner of the museum set aside to memorialize the founding fruit growers. One prized artifact on display is the Musselman family Bible. Also on the floor level is the non-profit gift shop, featuring unique items and a few select hand-crafts along the apple theme. The entire spacious upper level of the museum has been trans formed into a gallery of apple memorabilia, historic artifacts, and cultural heritage displays. Apple production eqiupment ranges from ground tillage plows to a grading line and commercial apple peeler. A kitchen, circa 1857, depicts the everyday life of that era. Even orchard production prob lems are addressed with an educa tional display on beneficial and pest insects, along with informa tion on integrated pest manage ment. Pesticide needs and use of c H/Sfps (Turn to Page B 4)
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