Thursday, October 1, 2026
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The annual Scarecrows in the Village display, celebrating it 47th year at Peddler's Village, has become one of the sure signs that fall has arrived in Bucks County.
More than 150 handmade scarecrows are now on display throughout the Lahaska shopping and dining destination through Oct. 26, giving visitors six weeks to see the creative, humorous and sometimes spooky creations.
For the people who return year after year, the fun is knowing that while the tradition remains the same, the scarecrows themselves are always changing.
“You never know what anyone can and will create,” said Joseph Albert of Peddler’s Village.
This year’s display includes about 65 scarecrows made by Peddler’s Village shops and restaurants, along with more than 130 entries from individuals, families, businesses and organizations throughout the area.
Some creators come from nearby, while others travel from places as far away as Sea Isle City and New York. Many have family ties to the area or have been coming to Peddler’s Village for years.
Albert said some families have been participating for 20 years or even longer.
“We have a lot of families who create one together and they all contribute different parts of the scarecrow,” he said.
That family participation is one of the reasons Albert believes the tradition has lasted for nearly five decades.
“It’s very community oriented and anybody can do it. You don’t have to be a wonderful artist to create one,” he said. “It’s just a fun activity for everyone.”
That do-it-yourself spirit is also part of what makes the display so unpredictable.
While there are rules regarding the size and weight of the scarecrows, creators have considerable freedom when it comes to deciding what a scarecrow should look like.
“It’s someone’s interpretation of what they think a scarecrow is and everyone has their own interpretation,” Albert said. “So to us, it’s not just a head and body on a stick made of straw in old clothes.”
In fact, some entries don't even use the traditional materials people might associate with a scarecrow.
“A lot of people who submit use brand new clothes, everyone uses different materials and puts it together differently but ultimately it becomes a scarecrow,” Albert said. “It’s the modern way.”
Peddler’s Village once considered limiting the contest to more traditional, straw-stuffed scarecrows, but Albert said that would have prevented some people from participating because not everyone has access to straw.
Instead, the organizers embraced the different interpretations.
“Because we open it up to everyone’s interpretation, that makes these scarecrows so special and unique,” he said.
That creativity is evident throughout the display, where a visitor can walk from one scarecrow to the next and find something completely different.
Macia Miller, who visited the village, posed with a Dolly Parton scarecrow and said the variety is one of her favorite parts of the event.
“This is a fabulous event. I love seeing the creativity of all the scarecrows. I especially like the patriotic themes this year; it’s a very interesting event,” Miller said.
The patriotic theme is especially prominent this year because of the nation’s 250th anniversary celebration.
For the first time, Peddler’s Village has added the 'Figures of America’s Past' category, challenging creators to bring historical figures to life in scarecrow form.
The patriotic entries are just one of several categories visitors can explore.
The 'Traditional' category features the classic straw-stuffed scarecrow. 'Quite the Character' includes fictional and nonfictional characters, television characters, animals and animated characters. The 'Care Crow in Your Corner' category gives nonprofit organizations a chance to raise awareness about causes and organizations. 'Fright Night' is devoted to scary and Halloween-themed creations, while 'Kids Only' is reserved for children 12 and younger and includes entries inspired by Disney, Sesame Street, storybooks and superheroes.
'Quite the Character' is typically the largest category, and this year is no exception, with more than 60 entries.
For the past several years, Peddler’s Village has also included the 'Care Crow Corner,' which features scarecrows created to draw attention to causes such as heart disease, autism, mental health and cancer.
The category can be entered by nonprofit organizations or by people supporting a particular organization or cause.
The scarecrows are judged by visitors, with awards presented in each category as well as honorable mentions. Voting is based on creativity and how well the entry fits its category.
Guests can vote through the Peddler’s Village mobile app (peddlersvillage.com/news/peddlers-village-mobile-app/) through Oct. 14, while paper ballots also are available in the shops.
Albert said narrowing down the winners is no easy task.
“So we take the top scores in all first-place placements from everybody who voted and out of that we figure out who really knocked it out of the park,” Albert said. “It’s a lot of fun to judge them because we get to look at them all.”
For families who visit Peddler’s Village each year, the scarecrows have become part of their own fall traditions.
Kyla Warner, 6, and her brother, Dalton Warner, 9, of Long Valley, New Jersey, visited with their parents and posed with several scarecrows.
Their mother said the family returns every year for the fall festival.
“It’s great to see how the community comes together and see what each store comes up with for their scarecrows and how they decorate their stores for the fall festival,” she said. “It's fun for the children when they see their favorite characters from movies or tv shows made into scarecrows.”
For Taylor May of New Hope, the scarecrows are part of an entire day spent at Peddler’s Village with family.
“I come here with my family every year and we spend the day just looking at all the different scarecrows and taking photos with many of them,” May said.
The Scarecrows in the Village display is free, meaning visitors don't have to shop or dine to enjoy it. They can park for free, walk the paths, look at the gardens and scarecrows, take photographs or bring a bagged lunch and spend the day.
“We’re almost like a park, but with shopping and dining,” Albert said.
On a nice fall day, Peddler’s Village can see between 8,000 and 10,000 visitors, with weather playing a major role in attendance. Festival weekends can bring as many as 20,000 people.
With the scarecrows remaining on display through Oct. 26, there is still plenty of time to wander through the village.
And while the 47th annual display is still underway, Peddler’s Village already has another milestone on the horizon.
The village itself will celebrate its 65th anniversary next June, with special events planned to mark the occasion.
For now, though, the focus is on the scarecrows, 150-plus handmade creations that prove there is no shortage of ways to turn straw, clothing, decorations and a little imagination into something special.
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Scarecrows in the Village is open daily now through Oct. 26, during regular Peddler's Village hours.
Scarecrows in the Village is free to attend and open to the public.
There are more than 150 handmade scarecrows displayed, ranging from cartoon characters to historical figures.
Peddler's Village has a plethora of shopping and dining, in addition to family fun centers, seasonal festivals, local tasting rooms and more.
