Oktoberfest in Boyertown

In the 1700’s immigrants from Germany first settled in the area that is now Boyertown. Houses and roads were created, taverns were built, small industries and farms were established, and the early settlement grew into a thriving farming and industrial community.  Those early settlers created this small town community -- a place “where friends and family want to be.”

Today, Boyertown retains a strong identification with its German heritage with 45.8% of its residents being of German descent, and 12.7% claiming to be Pennsylvania German.  With such a strong German heritage, Building a Better Boyertown has agreed to host “Oktoberfest in Boyertown” in this historic town as a 3^rd Saturday promotion. With the approval of the Borough, the event will be held in the Borough’s Inner Core parking area (off of South Reading Avenue) on Saturday, September 20, 2008 from 12 noon until 8 o’clock p.m.

In Germany, Oktoberfest is an annual 17 day festival in Munich, beginning mid-September and ending on the first Sunday of October. As the celebration of the harvest arrives, every festival begins with a keg of beer tapped by the Mayor of Munich at 12:00 noon who declares "O'zapft is!" (Bavarian: "It’s tapped!"). The beer is served in a one-liter-tankard called Maß. The first mass is served to the Bavarian Prime Minister. In the late 20th century the Munich breweries celebrated Oktoberfest by setting up large temporary beer halls, each seating 3,000 – 5,000 people, and hiring bands to entertain the crowds as they ate and celebrated. Oktoberfest is famous throughout the world and is the world's largest fair, with some six million people attending every year.

“Oktoberfest in Boyertown” will be a celebration of our German heritage serving beer, wine, and soda (at a minimal fee) in our version of a “beer tent.”   A Farmers’ Market and an art and craft fair will occupy the entire parking area from late morning until the early evening.  Various farm products, art work, and crafts will be available for display and sale throughout the day.  In the late afternoon and into the evening, a disc jockey will play music for everyone’s enjoyment.  Foods prepared by various local eateries such as Sweet Beginnings, Carmelo’s, CD’s and Haas’s will be offered along with soft drinks and locally produced wines and beer in the “beer tent” from the late afternoon through the early evening.

This event will be a fund-raising effort for Building a Better Boyertown. If your business is interested in sponsoring this event, please contact the event Committee Chair, Jeff Karver at 610.367.2148.  If you are interested in more information about becoming an art or craft vendor (there will be no applied fees for vendors) or about the event itself, please contact Building a Better Boyertown’s Main Street Manager, Heather Oxenford by phone (610.369.3054) or via email at manager@boyertownpa.org.

All alcohol sales and consumption will be monitored closely by the sale of wristbands with proof of age.

Consumption of alcohol by a minor or excessive drinking will not be tolerated.