Lancaster County

Lancaster County Pennsylvania is a unique spot in the US. My husband grew up on a small dairy farm in the rolling hills of this southeastern county of Pennsylvania, surrounded by more small dairy farms. It is very picturesque. There are a lot of Amish, Mennonites and Brethren that have farms and businesses and add to the uniqueness of this county in Pennsylvania. 

A sunset over a farm, growing mums…

Beautiful small (and large) farm markets are everywhere and we saw teams of mules in the fields, and horse and buggy’s on the streets. There are covered bridges, immaculate gardens, and narrow roads. And many, many beautiful old buildings and barns and houses.  

Erb’s historic covered bridge (1887), on the backroads of Lancaster Co., PA.
One of the many farmer’s markets we saw on our drives.
A first for me…peanut pumpkins!
A hard way of doing farm work, but looks charming.

On Sunday the family gathered at Gary’s sister’s farm. It was fun to be together and visit with one another (and I love all food at a potluck). Gary’s sister and her husband are dairy farmers, and they live in the house her husband grew up in. It is a lovely, old limestone house, well maintained, and the engraved wall plaque dates it to 1788.

Wall plate imbedded into the limestone wall…1788.
Enjoying the porch of this lovely home.
A family gathering.

Each time we visit Pennsylvania we go see the farm where my husband grew up. A Mennonite family bought it thirty years ago. They have electricity, but are not allowed to drive cars…so they get around with the horse and buggy.

Photo take on a previous trip.

They are kind folks, and always welcome us into their home and invite us to look at all the changes they’ve made around the farm. They have a modern milking parlor, but do not make use of the data collection feature because they do not have a computer.

A previous photo of Gary’s childhood farm. photo by gb

Another farm we visited this year was a farm that had four generations of Bollinger’s living on it, from 1855 to 1998. The farm house and buildings were bought by a local man who restored the home and barn to its original appearance, and it is stunning.

The restored barn that once was owned by four generations of the Bollinger family. We know the barn was built prior to 1830.

It was wonderful to see all he had done. For example, the brick house had been painted with three layers of white paint and it was stripped to the original brick, and repointed (grout redone).

The beautifully, restored house next to a creek.

Another example is the inside of the barn. It was refurbished and they added a restroom and have family gatherings and church events in it. We are grateful he and his wife are enjoying this historic place, and at times with their 41 grandchildren! 

Inside the old, restored barn…a wonderful event space for the family,.
The deep window sills of the old barn.
Repainted barn door with original, iron hardware.
The barn is also re-landscaped on the outside.

There is so much history in the area. Gary likes researching his genealogy, and has traced his roots back to Rudolph Bollinger who arrived in Pennsylvania from Switzerland around 1720. 

Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery, founded in 1861, is the first commercial pretzel bakery in America, in Lititz, PA.
The Lititz Inn and Spa, built in 1764, an historic inn in Lititz, PA.
An old church near Linden Hall, an all girl’s school, founded in 1746, in Lititz, PA.

We enjoyed seeing friends who drove down from New Hampshire and joined us for a couple of days. It was fun showing them around.

It’s always proper to eat some local fare when visiting this area, such as shoo-fly pie, tomato pie, and lots and lots of ice cream from the local dairies. Not too hard to do!

Another restored door on the old Bollinger barn.

10 thoughts on “Lancaster County”

  2. What a neat trip. How fun to see everything restored. It must have been like going back in time.

  3. Valerie, these photos are fantastic ! How are you preserving the many entries you have to your collection ?

  4. Oh, Valerie, I love love love all of these photos and stories and history. I would love visiting this area. I’m impressed by everything you’ve shown me. I would very much like Gary’s family. That photo of all of you on the porch speaks family love and happiness.

    1. I know you would love this part of the country, and it’s history, and all the farms and surrounding area.
      It really is a special place.
      It was fun ending up sitting on the porch!

  5. What fun to have such a rich history in that incredibly beautiful area of Pennsylvania! Your pictures are incredible Valerie!!
    And what fun you were able to get to both of your 50th reunions!! You’ve certainly had a full, fun summer!! What a gift after the isolation of 2020!

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