The first Swiss Wine Festival was held in 1968. It had a flea market on the Courthouse lawn, grape stomping, and steintossen. Six years and many thousands of people later, the festival was proclaimed “too big” and was discontinued. A local event called “The Patchwork Fair” took its place for five years.
The festival was reborn in 1979 as the “Swiss Alpine Festival” with emphasis on family involvement, a fenced-in festival site, and an admission charge. A clean, safe, and popular new festival was begun. The Alpine theme included a Swiss Costume contest, the blowing of the Alp horn, a parade, arts and crafts exhibits, and polka dancing. A tour of historic homes was also held.