Ok--
for those of you blessed enough to grow up in Central NY you already know what a cackleberry is, and you went to the castle probably with your class at school or with your family before Halloween became a dirty word. I may stretch this blog over more than one day cause there is so much to remember. Each of you has your own special memory of your favorite part. Some lived for Milliman's fudge, some liked the cider, some loved the hayrides, some loved the whole Will farm. Mrs Will was the school home economics teacher and she took the whole month of October off school because this was a thriving business until November 1. Not only did they make money and hire a lot of youth workers, there scholarships and an end of the year party when everyone were rested(maybe in the summer who knows?) Each age group had different memories. I can see my Dad picking up our pumpkin to carry to the car to carve at home. Their were live animals to pet, and children everywhere.
Yes there was even a talking pumpkin who could answer all the questions a young halloweener might be troubled by. The great pumpkin knew everything, and had been around for hundreds of Halloweens and gave good advice. There were huge pumpkin totem poles lit to show the way at night, and as I became too old for some aspects of the farm, I still enjoyed the wonder of seeing a child who was visiting for the first time. for the whole side yard was full of pumpkins you could bring home of every shape and size pumpkins can grow to--even gourds!It wasn't designed so much to be scary as to be a fun afternoon or evening in a safe place.
I wish I had the chance to take my boys to the castle, but alas, thanks to the federal and state laws eventually they got coded out. It just became too much paperwork and hassle for the amount of time they could set aside. Popcorn balls and candy apples now are just tired store bought things that you don't know the recipe that they used (meaning chemicals) or how old they are.I apologize to the many merchants who made stuff you lived for and then couldn't get for a whole nother year. My memory is not what it should be. The Will family Castle is deeply missed.
By the way, figure out what a cackleberry is yet? thats right, they began with a roadside stand selling eggs and such. Weren't they clever? and if you lived on Preston Hill you knew the directions to the farm cause many times cars stopped and sang out,"is this the way to the pumpkin farm?" oh yes it is. Go the top of Preston hill and turn right, just keep going you can't miss it. In a pre-PlayStation world this was rare and precious,and we used our imagination to go to a magical world for a short time. Beauteous!thanks for the memories Will family and friends.
God bless .
for those of you blessed enough to grow up in Central NY you already know what a cackleberry is, and you went to the castle probably with your class at school or with your family before Halloween became a dirty word. I may stretch this blog over more than one day cause there is so much to remember. Each of you has your own special memory of your favorite part. Some lived for Milliman's fudge, some liked the cider, some loved the hayrides, some loved the whole Will farm. Mrs Will was the school home economics teacher and she took the whole month of October off school because this was a thriving business until November 1. Not only did they make money and hire a lot of youth workers, there scholarships and an end of the year party when everyone were rested(maybe in the summer who knows?) Each age group had different memories. I can see my Dad picking up our pumpkin to carry to the car to carve at home. Their were live animals to pet, and children everywhere.
Yes there was even a talking pumpkin who could answer all the questions a young halloweener might be troubled by. The great pumpkin knew everything, and had been around for hundreds of Halloweens and gave good advice. There were huge pumpkin totem poles lit to show the way at night, and as I became too old for some aspects of the farm, I still enjoyed the wonder of seeing a child who was visiting for the first time. for the whole side yard was full of pumpkins you could bring home of every shape and size pumpkins can grow to--even gourds!It wasn't designed so much to be scary as to be a fun afternoon or evening in a safe place.
I wish I had the chance to take my boys to the castle, but alas, thanks to the federal and state laws eventually they got coded out. It just became too much paperwork and hassle for the amount of time they could set aside. Popcorn balls and candy apples now are just tired store bought things that you don't know the recipe that they used (meaning chemicals) or how old they are.I apologize to the many merchants who made stuff you lived for and then couldn't get for a whole nother year. My memory is not what it should be. The Will family Castle is deeply missed.
By the way, figure out what a cackleberry is yet? thats right, they began with a roadside stand selling eggs and such. Weren't they clever? and if you lived on Preston Hill you knew the directions to the farm cause many times cars stopped and sang out,"is this the way to the pumpkin farm?" oh yes it is. Go the top of Preston hill and turn right, just keep going you can't miss it. In a pre-PlayStation world this was rare and precious,and we used our imagination to go to a magical world for a short time. Beauteous!thanks for the memories Will family and friends.
God bless .
Cackleberry Castle has re-opened..
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