PA Chestnut Festival Plans Presented, Outlined for January 25
By Christopher Miller
CASTANEA TOWNSHIP – The Castanea Township Recreation Committee is hard at work planning what could very well be Clinton County’s first event of the new year.
The inaugural 2025 PA Chestnut Festival is scheduled for Saturday, January 25 from 2:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the Castanea Fireman’s Picnic Grounds at 859 Lower Creek Road in the township.
The Chestnut Festival Committee, made up of Chairperson Rick Schulze, Diana Andrus, Brady Carnahan, Maripat Dion, and Chris Nestlerode, has a full afternoon planned with ribbon cutting, music, and a vendor fair with currently 20 unique vendors signed up to sell and present their wares.
Introduced to the public at the Castanea Halloween Parade, the Recreation Committee promoted the event with their parade float featuring “Chazzy Chestnut,” the mascot for the festival.
The schedule for the Chestnut Festival is below.
1:45 p.m. Ribbon Cutting
2:00-4:00 p.m. John Stevens Polka Band
2:00-7:00 p.m. Vendor Fair, food, beverage
5:00-7:00 p.m. Private Stock Trio Band
There is no fee to enter the festival. Twenty vendors are currently signed up to be present at the event, including the PA Chapter of the American Chestnut Society.
Castanea is the Latin word for chestnut. The area of present-day Castanea used to be abundant in chestnut trees.
The event will also have outdoor burn barrel warming stations, synthetic ice skating rink, and S’Mores Kits from the Boy Scouts will be available for purchase.
The PA Chestnut Festival is sponsored by the Castanea Township Recreation Committee, Castanea Township Supervisors, Clinton County Economic Partnership & Visitors Bureau, Clinton County Commissioners, and the venue being donated by the Castanea Fire Company.
During the township meeting, the Recreation Committee also reported that the Christmas Tree Lighting and Parade were “a big hit” and the tree, a 15′ Douglas Fir, has been dubbed a “mini Rockefeller Tree.”
“Light Up Castanea,” A Christmas House Decorating Contest, was also recently announced. The public can nominate a house or self-nominate by contacting or emailing Maripat Dion by Wednesday, December 18. The chosen home will win exclusive bragging rights, a yard sign, and a mention on Facebook.
