Williams Grove Historical Steam Engine Association

In 1850 the Williams Family began hosting picnics on their farm along the Yellow Breeches. This along with the completion of the Dillsburg & Mechanicsville Railroad in 1872 led to the Grangers Fair taking place yearly on the property. During World War I the property was sold to Charles Markley in 1918. Unable to revive the operations of the Williams Grove picnics, it was sold to the Richwine Family in 1924. The Richwine’s converted the land into the Williams Grove Amusement Park. In 1928 the carousel house was built for the carousel the family acquired. The Richwine family is of great significance to WGHSEA as they allowed our organization to use the Association's grounds from the late 1950s until 1971 when the park was purchased by Morgan Hughes. Mr. Hughes allowed WGHSEA to continue to use the land. In 2006 Mr. Hughes announced the closure of the park. The opportunity to purchase our 90 acres from Mr.Hughes came in January 2007, 1 year prior to his passing.

Despite the park closing in 2006 and many floods that have ravaged the park through the years, the carousel house has stood tall and virtually untouched for the better part of 100 years. Williams Grove Speedway, is donating this magnificent structure to our organization for preservation. We plan to make this building a focal point of our grounds and use it for entertainment, events, and some much-needed shade.

Help us relocate and restore the Carousel House and save a piece of Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania history!