ister Farmini
b:
The Atkinson Craft Resource Log House was the site for the Fall Fest held in the
small village of Conestoga recently.
Conestoga Celebrates History With
A Civil War Encampment during the Fall Fest
Buffalo Festival I
LINDA WILLIAMS
Bedford Co. Correspondent
SCHELLSBURG (Bedford
Co.) When Ann Darrow mar
ried a buffalo fanner, she didn’t
know she was going to become a
marketing expert.
Richard and Ann Darrow
began raising buffalo 10 years
ago, five years before moving to
the spacious Falkland Farm in
Bedford County.
Four years ago, the Darrows
began marketing their own buf
falo meat with a small shop
located in the backyard of their
spacious farmhouse. With' four
children, Ann found it very
inconvenient to work away from
home. However, manning the
shop from her window was with
in the realm of reason.
Adding a wide array of south
western gift items made both
locally and on Navajo reserva
tions, Ann found the shop to be
an immediate success.
Homestead
Notes
I, Saturday, Noveml
The idea of a Buffalo Festival
held in conjunction with the
local Fall Foliage Festival
attended the first two weekends
in October each year in nearby
Bedford was Ann’s.
“We get the overflow crowd
from the thousands who attend
the festival and a lot of peopfe
who are just driving by on Roul;e
30,” she says.
This year the event was the
best ever with various activities
and events. The Wills Mountain
Renegades held a black powder
reenactment. A storyteller from
the Lancaster area wove tall
tales while a dreamcatcher
artist showed off the skills of her
craft.
There was a huge teepee,
owned by the Darrows, to be
enjoyed by kids of any age.
Local craftspeople displayed
various forms of art and baked
goods while fall apples were in
abundance at another stand.
Antique tractors from the
was enjoyed by the community.
ncludes Southwestern
Darrow collection brought back
memories to old timers and tum
mies were filled with buffalo
burgers or buffalo hot dogs.
If you were lucky, you just
might win a buffalo hide or a
skull to adorn a southwestern
spot in your home.
“It’s an event that just seems
to keep growing,” Ann says.
And, as the event grows, so
grows her shop with most of her
customers being travelers who
are traversing Route 30.
“Most of them have never
eaten buffalo meat or have only
had a sample before,” Ann
explains. “However, they are
aware that it is low in fat and
cholesterol and no one has ever
been known to have an allergy
to buffalo meat.”
“Once they stop, they are
hooked and many drive back
just to pick up more meat.”
While the Darrows do some
mail orders, they find shipping
the frozen meat to be expensive.
“We do ship jerky and we have
no problem with the gift items,”
Ann adds.
During the holiday season,
Mother’s Day, Father’s Day or
other special events, Ann enjoys
making up gift baskets, which
include a variety of items from
her shop.
She does little advertising
locally but does do private mail
ings and advertises in gift
guides.
“It’s been a good way to mar
ket our meat,” Ann emphasizes
and agrees that it is a help to cut
out the middle man.
A new hemp cover is placed on the Conestoga wagon
during the Fall Fest.
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Fanning Staff
CONESTOGA (Lancaster Co.)
An 18th century log house in
the town of Conestoga is proof of
what a small town can do when the
people work together.
Not only was the log house
reconstructed but also it was com
pletely furnished with donated
authentic crafts from local crafts
persons to show how people lived
during the 18th century.
Named The Atkinson Craft
Resource Log House, it sits adja
cent to the Heritage Resource
Museum. Local residents recently
celebrated on site with a Fall Fest
in gratitude for the community’s
tireless efforts in completion of the
hall and log house.
The celebration included a Civil
War Encampment and Ball, and
local craftspersons portraying
blacksmithing, spinning, and
weaving.
Ann Darrow says the teepee Is her favorite part of the
Fall Festival, which they hold on their buffalo farm.
Getting into the act, Ann dresses in Indian attire.
Fall Fest
As Kenneth Hoak, president of
the Conestoga Area Historical
Society (CAHS), explained how
the log house was reconstructed
after it was condemned by city
officials, he talked about the pur
pose of the house and why it was
erected by the Conestoga Area
Historical Society, which includes
Manor, Martic, Pequea, and Mil
lersville townships.
The house was erected next to
the Heritage Resource Museum,
which tells the history of the area.
Almost everything that was
accomplished by the Historical
Society was done backward,
according to Hoak. First, he said,
the Historical Society was given a
Conestoga wagon. But they had no
place to exhibit it. The Society was
then offered a tobacco shed for
storage, but the property was soon
sold and the wagon needed to be
moved again.
(Turn to Page B 4)
Artifacts