CLAYSBURG — Musselman’s Grove is reopening this month, welcoming local performers to the stage once graced by the likes of Doc Williams and Grandpa Jones.

The entertainment venue nestled under the trees in Klahr has a storied history, but had fallen into disrepair, said Richard Allison, of the local history group Claysburg P.A.S.T., one of the organizers of the grand reopening celebration.

He, along with much of the community, is thrilled that the Grove will be hosting live music from 1 to 7 p.m. June 25, for the first of what is hoped to be more large public events on the grounds along Lower Claar Road.

“There is so much history and so many performers who went on to be in the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville,” he said.

Despite its rich history, getting the Grove spruced up took a lot of work and has been an ongoing project ever since Jarrett and Ashley Musselman purchased the property in 2019.

The two often drove past it, Ashley said.

“It was run down because no one took care of it,” she added.

Because Jarrett’s family had a lot of memories of the Grove and would talk about the performers and the large crowds, the duo decided to do something about its condition before it was gone forever.

“We thought it would be great to bring it back to the community for music and gatherings,” she said. “It is so cool to think that 10,000 people once gathered here.”

They had their work cut out for them, though, as after 30 years of neglect, parts of the stage had caved in and boards from the cook shack had fallen in, Ashley said. There were also a lot of trees and brush to clear from the grounds.

Renovations took a full two years to complete and included replacing the outhouses with new restrooms. The stage has been rebuilt and the cook shack has been refurbished with a new full kitchen. There are now dressing rooms, a ceremony site for weddings and a parking lot. In fact, a wedding was held on the grounds Saturday.

“They have done a spectacular job,” Allison said of the work on the site. “We owe them a huge debt of gratitude for reviving a piece of Claysburg history.”

Ashley said she and Jarrett talked with a couple who met at the Grove and have been married for 75 years.

“They came back and were so happy to see it revived,” she said.

Ashley believes that bringing back Musselman’s Grove shows that the community is still growing.

“There’s still people who want to see it flourish, and want to provide a positive light,” she said.

Rich history

Musselman’s Grove was in its heyday in the 1940s and 1950s, according to information compiled by the Claysburg P.A.S.T. group.

Traffic would get so heavy on Route 220 coming to Musselman’s Grove that it would cause a traffic jam and traveling up the Klahr valley during an event was a traffic jam in itself.

But, before it became known for its music, Musselman’s Grove was home to the annual Claar-Walter Reunion, which began meeting in 1901.

That annual reunion is credited with bringing in entertainment, like Grandpa Jones.

It was Doc Williams, though, who put the Grove on the map and brought in country music stars, Allison said.

Williams rented the property and he, along with members of the community, added a stage and cook shack.

Cinder blocks and tree trunks topped with slabs of boards were used for seating.

Records show that Williams rented the property for three years in a row from 1947-49, then sporadically until the early 1970s.

Shows at the Grove were held on Sundays, something nearly unheard of at the time due to Blue Laws, Allison said, but Williams asked the Smokey Run Rod and Gun Club from Klahr to co-sponsor shows.

“The churches nearby were pretty strict but Doc Williams was able to persuade them because it was a nonprofit and the shows provided income to local people,” he added.

Allison said Williams picked Sundays for the shows because he was performing on WWVA radio in Wheeling, W.Va., on Saturdays.

Shows at the Grove started at 1:30 p.m., would last for hours and drew crowds of 5,000 or more, he said.

“People would just go to venues for great entertainment,” Allison said.

Local performers included comedian Smokey Pleacher, who was born in Manns Choice but moved to Claysburg as a kid, Jim and Jane Claar, Duggie Potter and the Green Mountain Boys.

Those local celebrities shared the stage with big names such as Roy Acuff, Big Slim and his horse, the Carter Family with Mother Maybelle Carter and her sister and brother, the Sons of the Pioneers, the Chuckwagon Gang, Anita Carter and the Carter Family Girls with Hank Snow, Stoney and Wilma Lee Cooper and Johnny Mack Brown.

In addition, Little Jimmy Dickens, Minnie Pearl, Smiley Burnette, Ken Curtis, Tex Ritter and his horse and Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys are known to have performed at the Grove, along with Cowboy Copas, Ernest Tubb, Crazy Elmer, Eddy Arnold, Mother Maybelle Carter and her three daughters Helen, Anita and June, who married Johnny Cash. Connie Smith had her debut performance at the Grove.

But it was Lulu Belle and Scotty’s show on Sept 21, 1947, that drew the largest crowd, according to the history group, with 8,600 in paid attendance and thousands more who came in for free.

It was reported that Williams said if everyone would have gotten into the show, it would have topped 20,000 people in attendance. People were climbing to the top of trees and on top of buildings and automobiles to see the show, according to reports.

All that and the Grove was operating with only two bullhorn-style speakers hanging from two poles.

Musselman’s Grove’s last show was held on Sept 9, 1973. The reunion show featured Smokey Pleacher with much of the proceeds going to help with the construction of Claysburg’s Little League field.

The Grove was used sporadically after that and slowly deteriorated.

Stepping into history

In 1959, “Esquire” magazine featured Musselman’s Grove in a spread about the popularity of country music.

There is some humor in the piece, as the magazine article noted that the Grove was attended by silently approving Amish. Instead, those people were actually Upper and Lower Claar Church of the Brethren members in their drab, black garb at the time, the history group reported.

Still, “Musselman’s Grove being in the Esquire magazine was a big deal,” Allison stated.

It’s that thrill of knowing they’ll be making history and following in the footsteps of some great musicians that have the local talent lined up for the show — for free.

“Some of them performed here before and the new ones want to follow in the footsteps of the greatest that came before them,” Allison said.

Scheduled to perform are Ben Housel, Jame Grove, Cindy “Kassie” Finnegan Foor, Donnie Sell, Marty Walters, Ride the Song, 3 Chords & the Truth, Stephanie and the Wild Hearts, Bullscreek Rocks, Mountain City Grass, the Potter Family and the Claysburg Community Chorus.

Along with the music, there will be some storytelling highlighting the history of the Grove.

For the older generation who remember the venue in its heyday, Allison said bringing back Musselman’s Grove will give a lot of people the opportunity to go back to their childhood memories.

For the younger folks, Ashley Musselman said “we want people to still make memories there again.”

Mirror Writer Cati Keith can be reached at 814-946-7535.

Tickets available

A limited number of tickets are available for the show and can be purchased online at claysburg.us/musselman-s-grove-show-2022.html or in person at the Claysburg Area Public Library, Lighthouse Hardware and Peggy Musselman’s Flower Connection in Claysburg.

Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for students ages 6-17 and free for children 5 years and younger.

Parking at the venue is limited and available for those with a handicap placard. Others should plan to park at the Sheetz daycare parking lot in Sproul. Free shuttle buses will transport patrons from there to the site and back. Organizers said the buses will make continuous trips from 12:30 to 7:30 p.m. between the Grove and parking lots and wait times should be no longer than 15 minutes at either end.