BOYERTOWN —The 58th Annual Duryea Day Antique & Classic Car & Truck Show & Flea Market featured a display of more than 500 cars, trucks, and motorcycles at Boyertown Community Park.
Hosted by the Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles and the Pottstown Region of the Antique Automobile Club of America, Duryea Day pays homage to an early automotive pioneer.
Charles Duryea is renowned for creating the first commercially marketed car in the U.S. with his brother Frank. After relocating to Reading, Charles spent eight years producing distinctive vehicles at his Duryea Power Company factory. Several of these historic Duryea automobiles are now showcased at the Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles.
“This is always a nice event,” said Bill Connery as he posed in front of his 2023 Track T.
Duryea Day is an annual, family-friendly event always held on the Saturday of Labor Day weekend.
The full-day event included a vintage “base ball” game, The Irish Anvil Strongman show, the Boyertown Alumni Marching Unit, food vendors offering everything from popcorn to ice cream, featured vehicles, participation gifts, eight specialty trophies and top 30 trophies. For the second year, Helping Hands Inc. staff and volunteers helped provide breakfast and lunch.
“These cars are a rolling work of art,” said Colin McCaul as he posed with his 1951 Pontiac Streamliner featuring a Chief Pontiac hood ornament.
The ornament’s face lights up when the car’s lights are turned on.
“They used to make cars to be beautiful, functional, but attractive as well,” said McCaul.
Anthony Gabrjolek drives his 1950 Ford two-door sedan every day. It’s the only car he has.
“My dad and I built it,” said Gabrjolek. “It was an old custom. Years ago we put it back together and kind of made it our own. We had to totally rebuild it.”
Featured vehicle
This year’s featured vehicle was the Volkswagen.
“We’re partnering with the Lehigh Valley Dutch Dubbers to put together a fantastic display of Volkswagens, which will be on view near the park’s entrance,” said Michaela Zaborowski, community engagement coordinator for the Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles.
The Lehigh Valley Dutch Dubbers brought 20 cars to the show including Volkswagen’s The Thing, a 1978 Westfalia, a 1971 Dune Buggy, and a 1969 VW Bug.
“We just love to promote VWs and enjoy the VWs,” said Lehigh Valley Dutch Dubbers President Tara Yons.
Lehigh Valley Dutch Dubbers member Dennis Santini received a Museum Choice trophy for his 1978 Westfalia VW.
Claire Weinsteiger’s 1967 VW Dune Buggy took about a year to redo.
“We did everything. We painted everything. The motor we redid, the brakes, everything,” said Tony Weinsteiger.
“We take it down and drive it around Ocean City,” said Claire Weinsteiger.
It doesn’t have a gas gauge, but it has around a 10-gallon tank and gets close to 28-29 miles to the gallon.
The Buggy is lighter than the Bug and has a Volkswagen motor in the back.
“They would take a Beetle, most of the time brand new, right off the factory floor and they would buy a Dune Buggy body,” said Tom Keefer of the Lehigh Valley Dutch Dubbers. “Then they would shorten the Beetle frame 14 and a half inches and put the Dune Buggy body on it.”
Vintage Base Ball
For the first time this year, the Brandywine Base Ball Club of West Chester took on the Elizabeth Resolutes of Elizabeth, N.J. in a vintage “base ball” doubleheader.
Brandywine won the first game 14-13 and the Resolutes won the second game 14-10.
Using the 1880s spelling of “base ball,” the name isn’t the only difference.
The games are played according to the rules enacted by the National Association of Base Ball Players on Dec. 9, 1863, commonly referred to as the “1864 rules.”
“It’s clearly recognizable as baseball,’” said Justin “Wip” Dilks, right field and team historian for the Brandywine Base Ball Club. “The big differences are the lack of gloves and the underhand pitching. In 1864, you can take the ball on one bounce for an out, but that rule goes away by 1865.”
The balls are hand-stitched, made from a single piece of leather, and are sewn to have “X” stitching. A single-star pattern ball is used throughout the entire game. So, the ball gets softer as the game goes on and the ball has to be retrieved if it goes into the crowd.
Modern baseballs are made with two pieces of leather.
“The cut of the wood on our bats is a little bit different,” said Dilks. “Ours tend to be thicker. Modern Major League players play with a tapered handle, and we don’t have that. But the types of tree, that’s the same with the types of wood.”
The games have the same amount of innings, players and outs as modern baseball. They normally play on a patch of grass instead of a modern field.
Reconstituted in 2013, the Brandywine Base Ball Club is always looking for new recruits.
“We (the Brandywine Base Ball Club) are people who are interested in baseball and history,” said Brandywine Base Ball Club of West Chester’s Rick “Stonewall” Stratton. “We like to get some exercise, and it’s an educational opportunity for us to educate the public and participate in the community.”
Source: Berkshire mont
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