Good morning, Lancaster County.
Patchy fog before 9 a.m., then cloudy and 72, with a slight chance of showers on either side of the afternoon.
Take today.
The rest of the week is wetter — showers likely tonight, and Tuesday is showers outright, 64 degrees, with gusts to 24.
If you're heading to the Ephrata Fair when it opens tomorrow, pack accordingly.
In today's Lancaster Local:
A carousel with roots in 1899 takes a real step toward coming home to Lancaster County
An AI class in Ephrata whose registration closes at noon today
A Mexican restaurant in Denver giving the library 10 percent of a day's takings
What Hollywood disaster movies get wrong, from a Millersville meteorologist
COMMUNITY NEWS
One step closer.
On Tuesday, September 15, Strasburg Township held a special-exception hearing and approved the project to move forward — putting the Rocky Springs Carousel on the Choo Choo Barn property in Strasburg.
This is the part of a project that never makes a headline and decides everything.
Gary Russell — president of the Choo Choo Barn Foundation and owner of the Choo Choo Barn — put it plainly in the announcement: "This approval brings us one step closer to seeing families ride this historic carousel once again."
He was equally plain about what it isn't: "There is still a great deal of work ahead."
Here's what's actually been approved, and what hasn't.
Approved: the project can move forward on that site, and the team can begin detailed planning with architects, engineers and restoration specialists.
Not yet: design, land development, permitting, fundraising and construction.
All of it still ahead.
There is no opening date, and the announcement doesn't offer one.
So this is a real milestone rather than a ribbon cutting.
Worth knowing the difference.
Now the carousel itself, because it is genuinely remarkable.
It's publicly known as The Carousel of Rocky Springs, and the Foundation describes it as assembled from some of the earliest surviving Dentzel carvings, with beginnings they date to 1899.
The collection: 48 animals, two chariots, an original ring machine, and a historic Wurlitzer band organ with more than 200 music rolls.
It ran for generations at Rocky Springs Amusement Park in Lancaster.
Then it left — to Michigan, and then to Dollywood — before coming back to Lancaster County in 1999.
It has been in Lancaster County ever since.
What the pavilion is for, in the announcement's own terms, is returning the carousel to public operation — a permanent, climate-controlled building where it can be ridden again.
The work is a partnership between the Choo Choo Barn Foundation and the Rocky Springs Carousel Association, which has spent years keeping the collection intact.
Russell's framing of why: "It is about preserving an important part of Lancaster County's history, creating lasting memories for families, and ensuring that this remarkable attraction continues to inspire future generations."
One note on the 1899 date.
That is the Foundation's own figure, and it lines up with when Gustav Dentzel brought the carousel to Rocky Springs Park.
Some accounts put parts of it a few years earlier still.
Either way, it predates every person who will ever ride it.
EVENTS
🀄 Mah-Jongg — Adamstown Area Library, 110 W. Main Street, Adamstown.
Today, Monday, September 21, 1:00 to 3:30 p.m.
First and third Monday of the month.
Brand-new players and longtime ones in the same room, which is the whole idea.
No registration.
✍️ Writing club — Lititz Public Library, 651 Kissel Hill Road, Lititz.
Today, Monday, September 21, 1:00 to 2:00 p.m.
Support, shared information and critiques.
One thing first: email Diane at [email protected] before you turn up, because the club may be full.
💵 Retirement Financial Planning — Manheim Community Library, 547 N Penryn Road, Manheim.
Today, Monday, September 21, 6:00 to 7:00 p.m.
An hour on IRAs, 401(k)s and the alternatives — how to compare plans and what to watch for.
Registration closes at 5:45.
🤖 Using AI to Assist and Simplify Your Life — Ephrata Public Library, 550 South Reading Road, Ephrata.
Tuesday, September 22, 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. Ages 18+.
ChatGPT, Google Gemini and Microsoft CoPilot — how to write prompts that actually get you something useful.
The catch is the deadline: registration closes at noon today, a day and a half before the class.
An earlier session of this one already filled up, so don't sit on it.
🔍 Bibliomaniacs Book Club — Columbia Public Library, 24 South 6th Street, Columbia.
Tuesday, September 22, 4:00 to 5:15 p.m.
This month it's We Solve Murders by Richard Osman.
All are welcome.
Registration closes at 3:45.
🎲 Adult Board Game Night — Columbia Public Library, 24 South 6th Street, Columbia.
Wednesday, September 23, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Bring your own game or play one of theirs.
Registration closes at 5:15.
🌿 Books, Naturally: A Nature Lover's Book Club — Lititz Public Library, 651 Kissel Hill Road, Lititz.
Tuesday, September 29, 2:00 to 3:30 p.m.
Books with nature in mind, fiction and nonfiction both, then a casual chat about them.
Registration closes at 1:00 — an hour before, not fifteen minutes.
❄️ Freeze Your Bills, Not Your House — Manheim Township Public Library, 595 Granite Run Drive, Lancaster.
Tuesday, September 29, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.
Winterizing your home and garden, run by the Manheim Township Sustainability Advisory Committee with the library.
Linda Ferich of the Lancaster Conservancy is among the speakers, on late-fall practices that help local wildlife through the cold.
Registration closes at 5:45.
🌮 Castañeda's Library Fundraiser — Castañeda's Mexican Restaurant, 323 Main Street, Denver.
Wednesday, September 30, 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
On the last Wednesday of every month, Castañeda's gives 10 percent of the day's proceeds to the Adamstown Area Library.
Alcohol excluded.
Dine in or take out — either counts.
Note the address: this one is at the restaurant in Denver, not at the library.
🏺 "Antiques Roadshow" @ the Library — Ephrata Public Library, 550 South Reading Road, Ephrata.
Wednesday, September 30, 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. Ages 18+.
Beth from Beyond the Fork in the Road on using Google Lens to work out what your things are worth.
You may bring one small household item along for the demonstration.
Registration closes at 5:45.
⛈️ Storm Science: The Real Meteorology Behind the Movies — Manheim Township Public Library, 595 Granite Run Drive, Lancaster.
Wednesday, September 30, 6:30 to 8:00 p.m.
Kyle Elliott, who directs the Weather Information Center at Millersville University, on how much of Hollywood's disaster-movie weather is real.
He joins live by Zoom on the library's big screen, so you go to the library and he appears on it.
Designed for adults.
Registration closes at 6:15.
Patchy fog before 9 a.m., then cloudy and a high near 72, northeast wind 7 to 9.
Tonight brings showers, likely between 9 p.m. and 2 a.m., down around 54.
Tuesday is showers and 64, with gusts to 24.
Wednesday keeps a 40 percent chance and a high of 65.
Have a good Monday.
— The Lancaster Local