FestiFall boosts Friendship Hill’s annual visitation in 2018
The Gallatin house is part of Friendship Hill National Historic Site in Springhill Township, which was the country estate of Albert Gallatin, best known as U.S. Secretary of the Treasury under Presidents Jefferson and Madison. The Friendship Hill Association in partnership with the National Park Service hosts an annual fall festival in September called FestiFall. The 2018 FestiFall broke records and boosted last year’s annual visitation at the park. (Photo courtesy of the National Park Service.)
This 2017 photo shows the public enjoying FestiFall at Friendship Hill National Historic Site in Springhill Township. The Friendship Hill Association in partnership with the National Park Service hosts the annual fall festival to celebrate the life and times of Albert Gallatin, best known as the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury under Presidents Jefferson and Madison. Friendship Hill was his country estate. The successful 2018 FestiFall helped boost annual visitation at the national park last year.
This 2017 photo shows youths enjoying candle dipping, always a popular activity during FestiFall at Friendship Hill National Historic Site in Springhill Township. The Friendship Hill Association in partnership with the National Park Service hosts the annual fall festival to celebrate the life and times of Albert Gallatin, best known as the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury under Presidents Jefferson and Madison. Friendship Hill was his country estate. The successful 2018 FestiFall helped boost annual visitation at the national park last year.
A great crowd at last year’s FestiFall, the popular September festival, helped boost 2018 visitation numbers at Friendship Hill National Historic Site in Springhill Township. Annual visitation for the year proved close to 12,000, up from the normal average of about 10,000.
“It was primarily due to FestiFall – it broke records,” said Brian Reedy, chief of interpretation and site manager, of the increase in annual visitation. “The big factor is the weather. It was a nice weekend. It wasn’t too hot. It wasn’t too cold.”
Reedy explained about half of Friendship Hill’s annual visitation comes during FestiFall, a two-day festival that celebrates the life and times of Albert Gallatin, a Swiss immigrant who served as U.S. Secretary of the Treasury under Presidents Jefferson and Madison, and built this country estate.
“We had almost 6,000 visitors for FestiFall. It’s a third more than what we had previously,” said Reedy of the 2018 festival that is hosted by the Friendship Hill Association, a friends organization, that puts on the annual fall event in partnership with the National Park Service.
Visitation is recorded at the visitor’s center in the Gallatin house, which is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays during the winter season. The house will be open seven days a week from May 1 through the end of September.
But visitors have year-round access to the grounds from sunrise to sunset daily at both Friendship Hill and Fort Necessity National Battlefield in Wharton Township, which is Fayette County’s other national park.
Fort Necessity maintains an average of 40,000 visitors a year, reported Reedy, who said the visitor’s center is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week year-round while the park’s Mount Washington Tavern, Jumonville Glen and the picnic area will open May 1 through the end of October.
Altogether, the National Park Service maintains five national parks in Western Pennsylvania, including Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site and Johnstown Flood National Memorial, both in Cambria County, and Flight 93 National Memorial in Somerset County. Admission to all the national parks in Western Pennsylvania is free.
Altogether, America’s national parks exceeded 318 million recreation visits in 2018, according to the National Park Service’s website. It was the third highest year for recreation visits, behind 2016 and 2017.
Local officials see an appreciation for the parks.
“We definitely noticed that once the (federal) shutdown was over that folks were glad to see us up and running,” said Reedy. “They enjoy coming out and talking to the park staff. They appreciate the work that’s done to keep the parks clean and neat, and tell the story.”
More information on Friendship Hill is available at www.nps.gov/frhi and on Fort Necessity at www.nps.gov/fone.