WELCOME

In September, once again our little town of McClure will come alive with the sights, sounds, lights, laughter, fellowship and homecomings as we celebrate the 133rd year of “The McClure Bean Soup Festival and Fair.”

The Theme for all Pennsylvania State Fairs for 2023 is “Growing The Future.”   The Pennsylvania State Association of County Fairs consists of 108 agricultural fairs in our program plus the PA Farm Show for a grand total of 109. County Fairs and The PA Farm Show have as their focal point education and showcasing agriculture, horticulture, and tourism.  Every Fair in Pennsylvania is different, yet for everything that is unique with each fair, they all operate with the same purpose – to showcase the best that is made and grown in PA and educating their visitors about agriculture. Stop by our fair and see Pennsylvania’s agriculture at its best. Support your fairs! 

We would like to invite you to exhibit all your fruits, vegetables, wine, eggs, baked goods, and more by participating in our “Open Show” entries.  You can showcase your prize-winning canned goods, home grown fruits and vegetables, flowers, hay, woodcrafts, antiques and so much more.   We have a Milk Chugging Contest, Shoebox Float Contest, and Chili Contest, Homemade Ice Cream Contest, Farm Games and more, Come Join the Fun at our Fair. We would like to take this opportunity to invite you, your family, and your friends to visit our fair and take a stroll thru our exhibit hall to see how we are “Growing The Future”.   This agriculture is taken right from the Farms and from Family gardens.

As always, our fair would not continue to grow without the many hours that our “Valuable Volunteers” give to us every year!  Our fair officers and committee members contribute many volunteer hours and many fundraiser events to continue the progress of our fair.  You will find our volunteers in the exhibit hall, food stand, souvenir stand, cake wheel, candy wheel and many other areas of our fair!  Another important part of our fair is our many sponsors.  Year after year, we have businesses that “Sponsor the Day” and we also have individuals and businesses sponsor our many contests that we have during fair week.  We, the Fair Officers, Board of Directors and Committee Members extend a warm THANK YOU for your continued support and would like to welcome you to attend our fair.

Mark your calendars and join us for a week of “Growing the Future” as we celebrate 132 years at The McClure Bean Soup Festival and Fair.                                

Sandra Fisher, President                                                                        

Fair Officers, Board of Directs and Committee Members

The History of the Bean Soup!

McClure is proud of its living memorial to all veterans of all wars in the annually held Bean Soup celebrations started by Veterans of the Civil War of McClure and surrounding vicinities. On July 23, 1883, a group of veterans of the Civil War met on the second story of Joseph Peters blacksmith shop in Bannerville for the purpose of organizing a Grand Army of Republic Post. After several preliminary meetings, the first session of the newly formed post was held on October 20, 1883.

This organization held many get-togethers and observed bean soup festivals from time to time, but not until 1891 did the Bean Soup Celebration invite the public to a real Civil War bean soup dinner. Records show Comrade Ner B. Middleswarth was chairman in charge of his celebration and secured from the war department “hard tack” to be served with soup. Comrade Henry Kahley who was a cook in the Civil War was in charge of the soup. Another veteran named in cooking was Comrade Aaron Bickel. From 1891 on, the thinning of the ranks in the early 1900’s caused them to feel that the celebration should be carried on by their sons. Since then, the present Henry K. Ritter Camp Sons of Union War Veterans and citizens of McClure have put forth a united effort to the novel celebration using a ton of beans and a ton of crackers to serve the tens of thousands who attend each year.

The making of the soup in large iron kettles is done over a wood-fire battery of furnaces capable of handling 16 large 35 gallon capacity kettles at one time. Each man stirs two of the kettles during two hours and twenty minutes shifts. After seeing it being made and partaking in the main attraction of eating the soup, one can enjoy the many varied attractions which have been added including amusement rides and concessions, displays, parades, nightly entertainment and Civil War re-enactment.

For 50 years, Mr. Samuel H. Bubb was involved with organizing the McClure Bean Soup celebration and making it successful. In September 2008, we were officially named one of Pennsylvania’s State Fairs. We consider this quite an honor and will continue to support Pennsylvania’s agriculture.

We are continuing to promote Pennsylvania’s agriculture with the help of countless volunteers that are working hard to keep our Fair alive.

Civil War Beef Bean Soup Recipes

The original recipe of the first Bean Soup was simple: 20 pounds of beef, a large bucketful of beans, and water. Cook and stir until tender (usually 3 hours).

A later recipe with equal portions of beef and beans, pound for pound, water and cook until done.

In the 1960’s the recipe was as follows: “Into each 20-gallon cast iron kettle put 16 pounds of ground beef, 8 pounds of suet and all the dry navy beans a 16 quart bucket holds. Use clear spring water. As the soup simmers, stir constantly with a 10-pound wooden paddle for 2 hours or longer till beans are soft and disintegrated. No seasoning is used.

25 pounds of beans and 15 pounds of beef and 6 pounds of suet and a handful of salt.

All of the above are cooked over wood fires. All are stirred with large wooden paddles with big wooden finers to cream the soup by brushing the beans.