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people per year; with 25,000 visitors attending in 2009. As the event has grown, so too has the diversity of festival visitors. People from a wide spectrum of backgrounds and locations visit the festival from the U.S. and Canada attend, with the majority of festival visitors coming from
Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and other Middle Atlantic States.
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The ‘original’ festival was an informal picnic organized by volunteers, their families and friends, and took place in the same year as the Shrine’s dedication (1966). It included a professional art exhibit of Polish artists, which graced the walls of a historic Bucks County barn located on the Shrine
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This new wave of immigration has served to complement and supplement the ranks of Polish-Americans who have been here from previous generations. As a result of this convergence, the
Philadelphia Polish festival has experienced significant growth. It currently draws an average of approximately 20,000
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The original festival was simply called the Annual
Festival and Country Fair. But in the second year, it was renamed the Polish Festival and Country Fair, and was moved to the upper grounds where the new Shrine basilica had been built. Several years later, the festival dates were expanded to include
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Dr. Raymond and
Virginia Chase, and Father Michael Zembruski, founder of the Shrine, were the founders and organizers of the first festival. They recognized a lack of any local events dedicated to Polish-Americans, despite a significant population of Polish-Americans in the Philadelphia, upstate
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The festival is dedicated to promoting greater awareness, understanding and appreciation of Polish heritage, culture, food and traditions. It is a strictly non-profit event and all proceeds are donated to the Shrine, which serves as a major cultural and spiritual center for Polish
Americans
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The festival is planned and staffed entirely by volunteers who work at the festival itself and maintain the festival grounds and facilities throughout the year. Many of the volunteers are the 2nd and 3rd generation representatives of their families to serve at the event.
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To enhance an understanding of Polish history, a number of reenactments are conducted. These include live demonstrations of Polish warriors from the 16th to 20th centuries. There is also a reenactment of the lifestyles of “typical” characters – from nobility
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The cultural focus centers around a replica of a Polish village where a traditional Polish wedding ceremony (Polskie wesele) takes place; a harvest festival (dożynki) is staged; a
Maypole dance is performed; and a demonstration of Polish Easter egg
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a second weekend in
September to accommodate the ever-increasing crowds. Eventually, the festival name was changed to the Polish-American Festival. In 2010, the festival was finally renamed as the Polish-American Family Festival and Country Fair.
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Music and dance are important aspect of Polish culture. On each festival day there are a variety of musical acts and dance troupes that perform on a main stage area. The music includes a wide variety of popular bands performing Polish-American
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The success from that first year inspired its founders to expand into a formal annual event the next year (1967). This became a harbinger of a revival in Polish ethnic identity that was soon to occur in the early 1970s.
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in 1989 initiated a large increase in the immigration of Polish nationals to the United States that continues to this day. Many of the new immigrants settled in
Pennsylvania, in areas such as the
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As part of its mission to promote Polish cultural awareness, the festival stages numerous demonstrations and exhibits to educate visitors about Polish traditions and history.
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based on recipes that were brought to
America by Polish immigrants and are still preserved by their Polish-American descendants today. During each festival, a wide variety of
217:(Polish highlander) traditions. A series of cooking demonstrations is also held to teach the art of making pierogi, kapusta (sauerkraut) and gołąbki (stuffed cabbage).
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Food also plays a central role in Polish culture and traditions. Because of this, the festival places special emphasis on presenting authentic traditional
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In conjunction with the entertainment, the festival organizers invite notable guests of Polish heritage to be guest celebrities. In 2009 the Polish boxer,
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New
Brunswick (U.S.A.) and London (U.K.): Transaction Publishers. (Originally published: Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press. 1987.)
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One of the most notable visitors over the years was President Ronald Reagan, who enjoyed a placki (potato pancake) on the festival grounds.
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225:) to peasants (Chłopi) – that were found in Polish society during the 17th century Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
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As the festival evolved and expanded, it was more formally organized into three distinct types of events:
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unity and pride that is among the largest and oldest festivals of its kind in the United States.
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family of Polish painters, which included Jan, and his two sons, Tadeusz (“Tade”) and Adam.
146:. The dancing presentations are performed by dance troupes versed in the traditional Polish
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grounds. The helicopter aviation pioneer and National Medal of Technology recipient, Frank
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neighborhood of Philadelphia, and in the Brooklyn area of New York City, known as
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213:) decorating is conducted. Demonstrations also are held to depict the colorful
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London: Thames and Hudson Ltd Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 82-50740.
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One of the more colorful reenactments is a demonstration of the famed Polish
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Cambridge Studies in Ethnomusicology, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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Polish Folk Music: Slavonic Heritage, Polish Tradition, Contemporary Trends.
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108:. Many Polish immigrants also immigrated to New Jersey and Connecticut.
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The Polish Way. A Thousand-Year History of the Poles and their Culture.
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474:). New York: Hippocrene Books (with Copernicus Society of America).
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The festival has run uninterrupted every year since its inception.
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It is held each year on the 170-acre (0.69 km) grounds of the
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There is also an art exhibit that displays the works of the
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Polish Profiles: The Land, The People and Their History
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Anthology compiled by: Krok-Paszkowski, Jan. (1982).
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The Polish American Family Festival and Country Fair
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Polish Customs, Traditions, & Folklore. Present
389:, Westport, Connecticut: Lawrence Hill & Co.,
32:(often referred to as “American Czestochowa.") in
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400:Knab, Sophie Hodorowicz. (2005 - 7th printing).
447:, Northampton, Massachusetts: Interlink Books,
150:, such as Krakowiak and Górale (highlanders).
421:Lukowski, Jerzy and Zawadzki, Hubert. (2006).
372:Heart of Europe: The Past in Poland's Present.
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335:Heart Of Europe: The Past In Poland's Present
282:Heart Of Europe: The Past In Poland's Present
284:. Oxford University Press (2008), p. 416-23.
402:Polish Customs, Traditions, & Folklore.
297:. Hippocrene Books Inc. (2005), p. 179-216.
30:National Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa
258:. Indiana University Press (2008), p. 35.
66:Pennsylvania and mid-Atlantic regions.
549:Polish-American culture in Pennsylvania
425:Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
374:New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
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404:New York, NY: Hippocrene Books, Inc.
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173:is prepared on site. This includes:
559:1966 establishments in Pennsylvania
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351:A History of the Polish Americans.
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269:A History of the Polish Americans
256:A History of the Polish Americans
489:New York, NY: Hippocrene Books.
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445:A Traveller's History of Poland
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554:Festivals established in 1966
466:Sienkiewicz, Henryk. (1991).
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423:A Concise History of Poland.
185:, placki (potato pancakes),
36:, PA., a northern suburb of
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385:Gronowicz, Antoni. (1976).
363:Czekanowska, Anna. (1990).
349:Bukowczyk, John J. (2008).
201:Demonstrations and exhibits
125:Demonstrations and Exhibits
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470:(Translation of original:
443:Radzilowski, John. (2007)
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544:Festivals in Philadelphia
293:Knab, Sophie Hodorowicz.
197:(a type of coffee cake).
189:(cabbage and meat stew),
181:(stuffed cabbage rolls),
519:Styka Family Art Exhibit
485:Zamoyski, Adam. (1993).
370:Davies, Norman. (2001).
98:fall of Polish communism
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21:is a celebration of
468:With Fire and Sword
416:Portrait of Poland.
337:. (2008), p. 260-9.
267:Bukowczyk, John J.
254:Bukowczyk, John J.
92:The Festival Today
461:978-1-56656-655-1
439:978-0-521-55917-1
380:978-0-19-280126-5
359:978-1-4128-0680-0
315:Knab, p. 117-120.
306:Knab, p. 152-157.
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538:Categories
243:References
106:Greenpoint
34:Doylestown
271:, p. 117.
191:chrusciki
223:szlachta
183:kielbasa
72:Piasecki
230:Hussars
211:Pisanka
179:gołąbki
175:pierogi
61:History
51:Polonia
44:Purpose
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215:Górale
148:styles
144:genres
237:Styka
195:babka
187:bigos
140:music
137:polka
498:ISBN
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161:Food
122:Food
96:The
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