No visit to this area is complete without a visit to Hershey, PA. We took the opportunity to drive over and visit “The Sweetest Place on Earth”. Kate, the campground owner, volunteered to watch Misty for us so we booked a hotel room in Lancaster and headed to Pennsylvania. Once you got outside of the Philadelphia metro area, the countryside opens up and is dotted with rolling farmland. Miles and miles of cornfields interspersed with alfalfa fields. If you missed the town welcome sign (pictured above), or the streetlights along Chocolate Ave., you can’t miss the overall smell of chocolate that drifts over the town. You know you’re at the epicenter of one of the best known chocolate manufacturers in America.
The streetlights alternate between a wrapped Hershey’s Kiss and an unwrapped one.
You can’t really tour the actual factory anymore, but Hershey has set up a place called “Chocolate World” for the millions of visitors that come through. Here there are several interactive activities and an informative ride through a replica of the chocolate making machines that are in use today. You can package your own bag of kisses from the conveyor line. You can make your own dessert and then eat it! There is a chocolate tasting seminar where you can sample a wide variety of chocolates made from cocoa beans from around the world. You can take a trolley ride through town and see historical places of interest, while singing along with your tour guides (yes, you do sing and a song sheet is provided so you can’t say that you don’t know the words!). At various stops along the way, you get to sample some of Hershey’s signature chocolate products.
Molds of Hershey bars. Now if only I had marshmallows and graham crackers...
Kisses rolling off of the production wheel. I think that I consumed at least this many today alone!
Hershey itself grew up around the plant. It was originally known as Derry Church, PA. It’s named was changed in 1906 after the chocolate product became widely known. Milton Hershey envisioned a complete community surrounding his factory. Complete with affordable housing, quality public schools and transportation, abundant recreation and cultural opportunities. He built a model town based on this concept and we see that today in Hershey. In fact, he wanted an amusement park and built what was then called Hershey Park. It is still in operation and is known today as Hersheypark. There are several roller coasters and carnival type rides along with a large outdoor concert hall right next to the plant.
The Hersheys were not able to have children, so in 1909 Milton started a school for boys who were orphans or who could not get a good education. Why only boys you ask? Well, at the turn of the century it seems that family members seemed to find homes and care for disadvantaged or orphaned girls. The Hersheys saw a predominance of boys who had no homes or family or any means to better themselves so they opened the school for boys. In the late 1960’s the school began accepting girls and now is about 50/50 split among the genders. Milton also saw to it that each graduate (the school provided education First grade through High School) received a $100 bill which he could use to start his new life. That tradition continues today. But there are also scholarships available that provide thousands of dollars towards tuition and provide the student with computers to help them in the pursuit of higher education.
Chocolate syrup being bottled. Got Milk anyone???
Later in September, we will be back in Hershey to attend the country’s largest RV show. At this show, many of the RV manufacturers introduce what is new in their coming year’s line of products. Vendors also abound offering a wide variety of things that the RVer can’t live without. Should be fun!
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