The Amish Acres

Amish Acres

Amish Acres is a tourist attraction in Nappanee, Indiana created from an Old Order Amish farm. The farm was purchased in October 1968 at auction from the Manasses Kuhns’ estate. The farm was homesteaded by Moses Stahly in 1873...

 Arts & Crafts Festival, held the first weekend

Workweek

The workweek and weekend are those complementary parts of the week devoted to labour and rest respectively. The legal working week , or workweek , is the part of the seven-day week devoted to labor. In most Western countries it is Monday to Friday. The weekend comprises the two traditionally...

 in August, Thursday through Sunday, July 31 through August 3, 2008 in Nappanee, Indiana

Nappanee, Indiana

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 6,710 people, 2,521 households, and 1,792 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,818.9 people per square mile . There were 2,647 housing units at an average density of 717.5 per square mile...

, celebrates its 46th year in 2008. It features 350 artists and craftsmen

Master craftsman

A master craftsman or master tradesman was a member of a guild. In the European guild system, only masters were allowed to be members of the guild....

 in a marketplace

Marketplace

A marketplace is the space, actual, virtual or metaphorical, in which a market operates. The term is also used in a trademark law context to denote the actual consumer environment, ie. the 'real world' in which products and services are provided and consumed.-Marketplaces and street markets:A...

 surrounding the farm

Farm

A farm is an area of land, or, for aquaculture, lake, river or sea, including various structures, devoted primarily to the practice of producing and managing food , fibres and, increasingly, fuel. It is the basic production facility in food production. Farms may be owned and operated by a single...

's pond. Over $10,000 in cash prizes are awarded winners in twelve categories. Four full days of entertainment

Entertainment

Entertainment consists of any activity which provides a diversion or permits people to amuse themselves in their leisure time. Entertainment is generally passive, such as watching opera or a movie. Active forms of amusement, such as sports, are more often considered to be recreation...

 on four stage

Stage (theatre)

In theatre or performance arts, the stage is a designated space for the performance productions. The stage serves as a space for actors or performers and a focal point for the members of the audience...

s, musical theatre

Musical theatre

Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...

, guided tours, wagon

Wagon

A wagon is a heavy four-wheeled vehicle pulled by draught animals; it was formerly often called a wain, and if low and sideless may be called a dray, trolley or float....

 rides, and popular awards highlight the event. The festival is one of the American Bus Association's Top 100 Events in North America in 2003, 2006, plus 2008 and the 7th Best Traditional Crafts Festival in the United States according to Sunshine Artist magazine. Over 70,000 visitors attend the event.

History

The festival began in 1962 in front of the Pletcher Furniture Village in downtown Nappanee as part of a sidewalk days celebration. Watercolors painted by local students in the park department's summer arts program were hung on clotheslines between the pilars of the store. The event quickly grew to include artists and craftsmen displaying and selling their wares in booths. The event soon spread to several blocks and alleys surrounding the furniture store. Visitors soon demanded Amish related products including smoked hams, jams, jellies, and baked goods. A converted school bus was used to tour the surrounding countryside. The Pletcher family founded Amish Acres in 1968 partly from this market study in miniature. The festival was moved to the historic farm in 1971 and rapidly expanded to surround the farm's pond.

External links

• Amish Acres Arts & Crafts Festival
• Amish Acres Historic Farm & Heritage Resort - Listed in the National Register of Historic Places