Located along fairground road, about two miles west of Lewisburg, is a weekly farmers market held on Wednesdays from 8am to 3pm. With stands inside and out, you can find everything from shirts to freshly smoked bacon, from gourmet cupcakes to plants for your garden.
Newcomers may be confused when they hear locals refer to it as The Auction. There is no auction anymore, but shopping at the market each week has been a tradition for many families for generations, going back to a time when our grandparents attended the weekly Wednesday night auction held there. The weekly auction began here in 1937, as a way to raise money for improvements to bring the fair back to the grounds. But the fair never returned to Lewisburg, and the weekly Auction, which included bands and dances and various entertainment, flourished. Originally an evening event, after the fire in 1965, the sale stands gradually opened earlier and earlier, as customers arrived earlier, until it became a day time market. (I have not yet been able to find when the last auction occurred on the sale grounds)
Before it was a market, it was an auction, and before it was an auction, it was the Union County Fairgrounds.
For 78 years, the Union County Fair was held in Brook Park, at the location where the Farmers Market is held today.
In 1907, a racetrack was built on the grounds, and in 1917 a grandstand was added. The fair ran for 4 days each year, with the train bringing visitors for nearby towns. There were concerts, parades, horse races, agricultural displays and livestock shows.
The fair ran every September, until 1936. In the fall of 1936, there were numerous articles in the local papers, pleading for help to reorganize and save the fair. But in 1937, the bank sold the land.
Fair Grounds Sold,- First Auction Held, 1937
At 7:05 pm on Monday September 1965, the fire alarm was sounded, as Bill Bly of BZ Motors reported that the Auction was on fire.
One hundred and twenty fire firemen, with eleven trucks, came from three neighboring communities, but the 70 by 250 foot wooden building was consumed by fire, and could not be saved. Flames shot 50 feet in the air, and the fire burned so high and hot that buildings 200 feet away needed to be wet down. The fire was reportedly the worst since the Bucknell Library roof burned in 1960.
The Leitzels chose to rebuild after the fire The new building was built out of concrete blocks, and measured 300 feet long and 50 feet wide. The Auction reopened in March of 1966.
I'm also unsure when the market fully made the switch to a morning sale, rather than an evening one, but reportedly after the fire, vendors were allowed to come in an hour before the public to set up. Gradually the public came earlier, so the vendors came earlier, and this trend continued until a time limit was set - the doors of the building would not be opened until 8am. Outside vendors set up as early as 6am, still today, but the doors of the building do not open until 8am. What was once an evening auction, gradually became a morning market, with most of the vendors being packed up and gone by early afternoon each Wednesday.
I'm told that around 2005 the Lewisburg Market attempted to add a Saturday sale, but the regular vendors were already established in other markets on Saturdays. New vendors were brought in to fill the empty tables, but the public never really caught on. (I do not remember this myself, although I was certainly shopping at the market on Wednesdays in 2005)
In 2020, The Market was sold to Gerald Stauffer. Stauffer hopes to add more prepared food venders to the market, such as brick oven pizza and bbq chicken. He plans make updates to the inside of the building, including insulation, and new doors. Outside, Stauffer plans to add 450 feet of permanent pavilion style structure, for outdoor vendors. He also has plans to add lines in the parking lot, and add bus parking. It's possible the market hours could be extended in the future, as well.
Other Produce Markets & Auctions In The Area
The Lewisburg Flea Market, held on Sundays, has a variety of produce stands in the summer months, at its location on rt 15 (where the old Silver Moon Drive in Movie Theater once stood)
Union County does still have a produce auction. In May of 1987, The Buffalo Valley Produce Auction opened. Sales are held on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and are meant to be for wholesalers, although the general public is welcome to bid. The Lewisburg Farmers Market does still have some stands with local farmers selling their locally grown produce, but much of what we find at all "farmers markets" these days (both at events, and small stores named farm market) comes from trucks that shipped it across the nation to the Buffalo Valley Produce Auction, where wholesalers purchase it and sell it at the market. To find truly local grown produce, always look for a growers market, where the requirement is typically that you must personally grow or make what you sell at your booth.
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Read more about when the union county fair was in Lewisburg, here:
The fair ran every September, until 1936. In the fall of 1936, there were numerous articles in the local papers, pleading for help to reorganize and save the fair. But in 1937, the bank sold the land.
Fair Grounds Sold,- First Auction Held, 1937
Although the local papers reported that Richard Leitzel planned to revive the county fair at this location, the fair never returned to Lewisburg. Mr Leitzel, who purchased the grounds, was already holding successful auctions in Gratz. Almost immediately he began holding auctions at his new Lewisburg location as well. His original plan was to pour thousands of dollars into renovations and new buildings to host the fair, and the weekly sales would help with those expenses.
On July 22 1937, The Sunbury Daily Item reported that more than 2,000 people had attended the "Unique Lewisburg Sale".
"If there was anything from a draft horse to rat poison that you wanted, you could have gotten it last night at the Community Auction Sale held at the Lewisburg Fair Grounds at Brook Park as the first of a series of similar events to be slated each Wednesday" More than 2,000 farmers and people from Union County and vicinity flocked to the first sale, where they remained to enjoy the evenings entertainment.
"If there was anything from a draft horse to rat poison that you wanted, you could have gotten it last night at the Community Auction Sale held at the Lewisburg Fair Grounds at Brook Park as the first of a series of similar events to be slated each Wednesday" More than 2,000 farmers and people from Union County and vicinity flocked to the first sale, where they remained to enjoy the evenings entertainment.
According to the description of the first sale, "many of the purchases were made directly from the farmer, but auctioneers were available for every item."
"The larger the crowd, the more merchandise we will have and will be sold! Get your share!"
On Wednesday's all banks and stores closed at noon in towns across the nation, making Wednesdays the idea night for the sale. It was common to load up lawn chairs and head to the auction right after school. A box truck would park in the front yard of the farm house under some large trees, and the auctioneer would sell from the truck. He's often sell something claiming it was "the last one!" And then at the conclusion of that sale, he's go into his truck and bring out more of that same item.
In addition to the auction, there were stands both inside the building and out, selling all sorts of food and produce, and in the spring, lots of baby chicks and ducks.
In the old wooden auction building (where auctions were held inside when the weather was poor) there was a food counter in the very front, where many families went for supper. In the 50's and 60's, there was also a bingo held each Wednesday night, with corn kernels being used to mark the cards.
The Auction Fire, September 1965
One hundred and twenty fire firemen, with eleven trucks, came from three neighboring communities, but the 70 by 250 foot wooden building was consumed by fire, and could not be saved. Flames shot 50 feet in the air, and the fire burned so high and hot that buildings 200 feet away needed to be wet down. The fire was reportedly the worst since the Bucknell Library roof burned in 1960.
The Leitzels chose to rebuild after the fire The new building was built out of concrete blocks, and measured 300 feet long and 50 feet wide. The Auction reopened in March of 1966.
The day before the Auction reopened, the local newspaper was full of ads congratulating it's return. The Market was still advertised as the "Sale & Market"
The Hours Changed Gradually, Not All At Once
By 1976, it was advertised as an "afternoon & evening" sale & market
I'm not certain when the last Auction was held at the market, I have not yet found any record of it. If you know, I'd love to hear from you!
I'm not certain when the last Auction was held at the market, I have not yet found any record of it. If you know, I'd love to hear from you!
A 1977 Ad For the Market
In March of 1981, This Vendor advertises as being open from 11am-7pm
The same paper has numerous ads, all referring to the Wednesday Sale as the Farmers Market, where all ads the year before refer to it as the "Sale & Market"
In 1982 the hours were 10 am to "after 7 pm" by 1985, the same ad listed the hours as 10 am-6 pm. (Today the hours are closer to 8am-1pm in the winter, with stands staying open later in the summer, but still mostly closed up by 3 pm)
The Market Today
In 2020, The Market was sold to Gerald Stauffer. Stauffer hopes to add more prepared food venders to the market, such as brick oven pizza and bbq chicken. He plans make updates to the inside of the building, including insulation, and new doors. Outside, Stauffer plans to add 450 feet of permanent pavilion style structure, for outdoor vendors. He also has plans to add lines in the parking lot, and add bus parking. It's possible the market hours could be extended in the future, as well.
Other Produce Markets & Auctions In The Area
The Lewisburg Flea Market, held on Sundays, has a variety of produce stands in the summer months, at its location on rt 15 (where the old Silver Moon Drive in Movie Theater once stood)
Union County does still have a produce auction. In May of 1987, The Buffalo Valley Produce Auction opened. Sales are held on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and are meant to be for wholesalers, although the general public is welcome to bid. The Lewisburg Farmers Market does still have some stands with local farmers selling their locally grown produce, but much of what we find at all "farmers markets" these days (both at events, and small stores named farm market) comes from trucks that shipped it across the nation to the Buffalo Valley Produce Auction, where wholesalers purchase it and sell it at the market. To find truly local grown produce, always look for a growers market, where the requirement is typically that you must personally grow or make what you sell at your booth.
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Local History
Where To Find The Farmers Markets
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A History Of Brookpark Farms
Hi there. Thank you so much for gathering and posting this information. It just makes me love the Market more. I don't live in Lewisburg now but I always took my kids there and felt it was a special place. I loved hearing more of what made it special to previous generations. Thanks!!
ReplyDeleteIn the early 60s, there were also “performers” of a sort. I remember a “strongman” who would tear telephone books several inches thick in half [the trick was to bend them so that you were only tearing several pages at a time but, even so, it wasn’t that easy].
ReplyDeleteAnother was a Native American man, presumably from the Southwest, who brought rattlesnakes and a Gila monster (still the only one I’ve ever seen). The auctions were still going on then out of the back of tractor trailers.