Country Threshing Days this year in Goessel isn’t just a celebration about the town and agriculture but the community’s Mennonite heritage.
The celebration in Goessel coincides with the 150th-Anniversary of Mennonite farmers coming to the area and beginning to settle in central Kansas. It lasts Friday through Saturday, Aug. 2 to 4, and will feature displays of old-time farm equipment and a wide variety of activities.
At 7 p.m. on Aug. 2, there will be a heritage presentation, telling the story about the 1874 Mennonite immigration that helped settle the area. The event includes a narrated pictorial presentation and reading of first-hand accounts of the immigrants, who left south Russia and found a home in and around Goessel. The event takes place in the Goessel High School Gymnasium, 100 E Main St.
A parade starts in Goessel’s downtown at 9:30 a.m.
A “Low German” meal with an a la carte menu will be served Aug. 3 at the elementary school from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The menu includes verenika, bierocks, sausage, zwieback, cherry moos, New Year’s cookies and drinks.
From 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., there will also be food to purchase at the preparatory school on museum grounds. Those items include bierocks, BBQ sandwiches, bean salad, chips, monster cookies and New Year’s cookies.
Both events take cash or check only, with the proceeds going to benefit the Mennonite Heritage and Agricultural Museum.
Throughout the event, there will be demonstrations from Hart Parr, Oliver and White farm equipment, as well as extensive antique farm machinery displays.
There will also be threshing, steam tractor, sawmill, draft horse and engine demonstrations.
There will also be activities for children on Saturday and Sunday at the Uncle Milt’s Shed event in Goessel. The events allow children to try their hands at corn shelling, horseshoes, marble games, beanbag toss and floating wooden boats.
They’ll also be able to make their own milk carton immigrant houses, wooden boats, adobe brick blocks and tombstone rubbings, among other things.
As of press time, an exact listing and schedule for all the activities and events had yet to be posted. If you’re looking for more information on the event, check its website at wheatco.org for updates.
Admission to Country Threshing Days is $7, and admission lasts all three days of the event.
