Kalona Fall Fest a community tradition

KALONA –Several thousand visitors from across the country stopped by the Kalona Historical Village to attend the 48th annual Kalona Fall Fest, which ran from Friday, Sept. 27 through Saturday, Sept. 28. The annual fundraiser, hosted by the local historical society, aims to raise funds to continue its efforts in preserving the history of the area.

This year, a dollar of each ticket sold was specifically designated to help complete several galleries in the Wahl Museum in the village, a house that was originally built in 1915. The society hopes to raise $15,000 from the Fall Fest.

Sue Curtis, an employee of the visitor center who has been working with the Village for three years said the center does tours with people.

'We explain what we have and that we're restoring the history of the area, so we have nearly four blocks of buildings that have been brought in from the surrounding area and they are maintained as they were when they were being used,” Curtis noted.

The four-block historical village includes a late 1800 farmhouse and an early 1800 log house, both of which are furnished and decorated. Also located in the village is the Iowa Mennonite Museum and Archives. The Kalona Historical Village shares the proceeds of Fall Fest with the Mennonite Museum.

The featured exhibit at the visitor center during the Fest was called 'Crazy Quilts” and included 220 Amish quilts made between 1850 and 1940 that the historical society and village has collected over the years. The 220 are part of a 900 quilt collection. Alongside the hand sewn quilts were vintage sewing machines and one of the largest displays of spool cabinets in the country.

Steve Reif, who was a founding member of the historical society, which celebrated its 50th anniversary this year, began collecting spool cabinets 34 years ago. His collection has grown to about 150 spool cabinets, many of which were featured in the Village the weekend of the Fall Fest.

'The best part is the people,” Reif said about the event.

'Lots of them are seeing each other after an entire year. Some people hold their reunions at the Fall Fest,” he continued.

During the event, Reif can be seen walking through the exhibits and talking about the many spool cabinets. On several occasions, he very proudly described a recent acquirement as a '119 year-old vending machine.”

Because of his outspoken knowledge about the antique items, visitors often approach Reif to learn more about the cabinets. Julia Hutchcroft and Robert Adolph, a couple from northern Illinois who own a spool cabinet they hope to donate to the Kalona Village, sought Reif out for more information about the vintage items.

Hutchcroft and Adolph traveled to Kalona as part of a trip to visit local friends, but also because they 'love history and getting to see the historical items.”

'Too many things go by the wayside and are thrown away in life. This is our history, this is where we came from. We learn from each generation, and to have visual representation of this kind of stuff, it's wonderful,” Adolph said.

When Adolph and Hutchcroft mention their cabinet, Reif immediately pulls out a nearby book and flips to a page, points to a picture and asks the couple if it resembles the spool cabinet at home. Reif quickly gives an estimate on the cabinet's market value.

Six generations of Reif's family have lived in Kalona. Reif's daughter, Nancy Ross began working with the society in 2006, and became a full-time director six years ago. She helps to lead and organize the Fall Fest each year.

Ross began attending the Fest when she was a little girl and has continued the tradition with her own three daughters. The fest director said one of the things she most looked forward to as a child was drinking the fresh apple cider at the Fest, an item that is no longer offered due to pasteurization laws.

'It's a bit of a food frenzy,” Ross noted. According to both Ross and her father, the food is a big draw for many local residents who come out, year after year.

'We're all about telling the history of our community and our town. That's what our main goal is, and educating people on what we have here. The festival is just a fun way to incorporate that and bring food vendors, church groups, youth groups … it's just a fun community event that is tradition. Tradition, to me, is what I call it,” Ross said.

Like Ross, the Kalona Fall Fest is a tradition that carries through several generations for many local families. The Allchins, residents of Columbus Junction, first began attending the event 20 years ago. Summer Allchin, who began coming as a small child, now brings her own two children, Everett, 7, and Naomi, 9, to the event every year.

'It's always just been fun, eating food and looking at the vendors and antiques,” Summer said.

'I'm glad [my children] get to come experience it too.”