About Us
GermanFest is sponsored by the Shenandoah Germanic Heritage Museum.
The Shenandoah Germanic Heritage Museum is on the homestead site of original Valley settlers John Hottel and George Keller. We maintain the original homestead of over 390 acres including their home from the 1800s, the ruins of a house from the 1700s, a summer kitchen, and loom house, and other outbuildings. This is where they lived their lives and raised families for generations.
Our mission is to preserve and share how our Germanic ancestors lived using actual items from their past in an authentic original setting.
Other historic sites are nearby, including Old Keller Cemetery, Friedens Church monument, St. Matthews Lutheran Church, Mt. Hebron Church, and Baker's Store.
Our museum is owned by Hottel Keller Memorial Inc. (HKMI). You can find more details at the HKMI website - click here.
The goals of the festival are to increase visibility in the community, educate students and the public about the old methods (blacksmith, weaving. farming. cooking, etc.) of our ancestor's way of life, recruit new members, recruit new volunteers, generate revenue, and promote tourism.
The three items that will appeal to the public are:
The Shenandoah Germanic Heritage Museum is on the homestead site of original Valley settlers John Hottel and George Keller. We maintain the original homestead of over 390 acres including their home from the 1800s, the ruins of a house from the 1700s, a summer kitchen, and loom house, and other outbuildings. This is where they lived their lives and raised families for generations.
Our mission is to preserve and share how our Germanic ancestors lived using actual items from their past in an authentic original setting.
Other historic sites are nearby, including Old Keller Cemetery, Friedens Church monument, St. Matthews Lutheran Church, Mt. Hebron Church, and Baker's Store.
Our museum is owned by Hottel Keller Memorial Inc. (HKMI). You can find more details at the HKMI website - click here.
The goals of the festival are to increase visibility in the community, educate students and the public about the old methods (blacksmith, weaving. farming. cooking, etc.) of our ancestor's way of life, recruit new members, recruit new volunteers, generate revenue, and promote tourism.
The three items that will appeal to the public are:
- the front 200 acres of our property are a part of the core battlefield area (Gen. Armstrong Custer among others were there) of the Battle of Toms Brook, October 9th, 1864;
- the Hottel and Keller families are maternal ancestors of world famous local (Winchester) singer Patsy Cline; Click here for Patsy Cline's Connection
- and last but not least, more than half of all the Germanic surnames in the Shenandoah Valley (Pitman, Funkhouser, Snarr, Zirkle, Borden, Crabill, etc.) can trace some of their ancestral roots to the Hottel and Keller families.
