What is now known as the Oley Valley is the ancestral homelands of the Lenape people.

Pennsylvania has no shortage of local fairs and festivals throughout the summer. In Berks County, the changing of the season from spring to autumn is marked by one of the largest events of the year, the Oley Valley Community Fair. 

Known locally as the Oley Fair, the three-day event has been delivering fall family fun for more than 75 years. 

In many ways, the Oley Fair is the quintessential “country fair.” There are carnival rides; livestock and agricultural exhibitions; and great food, all while maintaining its small-town roots. Exhibitors must be local, not only to the county, but to Oley and the surrounding townships. And the local school district closes during the fair as many of the students are either exhibiting or working throughout, with the fair scheduling kicking off at 9 a.m. on Thursday morning. 

The senior class sells apple cider at the fair, marking one of their largest fundraisers. The cider is delicious (and though it is non-alcoholic, it has a bite to it).

Cows, goats, and rabbits are among the animals that can be found in the livestock area, each animal being judged as part of the competition. One of the highlights is seeing a litter of piglets, usually still nursing from their mother, eliciting an “aww” from nearly everyone who walks past. 

At the rides, it was more about the “woos” and “whoas” as kids spin, slide, and coast. There were plenty of easy-going rides for toddlers, like the miniature train or the fire trucks, while early elementary kids enjoyed the classic dragon roller coaster or giant slide. 

But there was something for the older crowd, too, including a scrambler, a wild-mouse type roller coaster, and the fast-spinning Starship 3000. 

The Fairgrounds is home to four exhibit halls. Inside what could be called the main building is the majority of the family living exhibits. Tables were filled with prize-winning pies and cakes, quilts and clothes. There are also rows and rows of photos, with ribbons adorning the best in each category. 

A second building features arts, crafts, and florals. Most of the artwork comes from local students with competitions in sculpture, painting and drawing for kids in kindergarten through high school. Incredible local craftsmen also compete in woodworking and other fine arts while talented gardeners and floral artists showcase what they’ve grown and gathered. 

A third building houses comemrcial exhibits – local businesses and organizations selling, pitching, and educating fairgoers on their services.

The last of the exhibit buildings features mostly vegetables – beans, gourds, squash, and more. But you’ll also see beehives, sunflowers, and the popular decorating contests. 

Here, creative youth turn discarded bowling pins and mundane pumpkins into works of art. The wooden pins are transformed into Minions, gumball machines, and characters of all kinds, while the orange gourds become baseballs, dinosaurs, and other various works of art. 

While these pumpkins earn prizes for creativity, the Oley Fair also awards pumpkins for their size. A dozen pumpkins weighing hundreds of pounds each are found in a tent along the midway. This year’s winner weighed in at an impressive 734 pounds, though that’s only a little more than half the record set in 2019 when the winning pumpkin topped 1,400 pounds. 

I’m not sure how many pies you could make with a 1,400-pound pumpkin, but I do know that pumpkin pies, along with shoofly, apple, and blueberry pies, are among the range of food offerings at the fair. 

But my favorite things from our visit were the fries and milkshakes. 

There is a separate line just for French fries where volunteers are dishing out boats filled with the fried potatoes. They are fresh cut and absolutely delicious. And at $5.50 for a large, a great bargain for a shareable side. 

The milkshakes also have their own dedicated line where the soft-serve shakes are spun in four flavors: vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, and my personal favorite, orange. 

You will also find hot dogs and hamburgers, pork BBQ sandwiches, hoagies, homemade soups, baked goods, and candy, but make sure you get your food tickets first because neither cash nor card is accepted at the stands. We bought $40 in tickets and got a hot dog, three burgers, a large order of fries, three milkshakes, waters, two pieces of shoofly pie and a cinnamon roll. 

You’ll also need tickets for the rides – we got six rides for our $20 we spent on ride tickets. 

One thing that is free is the entertainment. There are concerts on the mainstage throughout the day and into the evening, as well tractor pulls at the small track. 

If you want to get in on the action, there are also pedal tractor pulling contests for adults and kids, a donut eating contest, and hay bale throwing contests. 

Plan to spend at least a couple hours strolling the grounds to take in the sights and enjoy delicious foods – get there early if you want to avoid the dinnertime rush where the line for fries can take 15 minutes or more – and feel free to bring a chair if you want to sit and enjoy the music (there is bench-seating provided, as well). 

We go nearly every year and always have a great time, this year was no exception, and I’m sure next year will be more of the same at the Oley Fair. 

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