Sitting on the banks of the Shenango River in eastern Pennsylvania, the town of Sharon was named after Bible’s Plain of Sharon in Israel. The city was a booming industrial town into the 1960s. Today, it gets its renown from a trio of stores that bill themselves as the “World’s Largest Seller” of shoes (Reyers), discount clothes (the Winner) and candy (Daffin’s Candies on East State Street, which began in 1903 and sold the first solid chocolate Easter bunnies).
Planning a visit? Stay at Adventure Bound Camping Resorts Shenango.
The Shenango River has been tamed by the US Army Corps of Engineers and the Shenango Lake Recreation Area attracts hikers, off-roaders, fishermen and boaters packing unlimited horsepower. The Canal Museum in Greenville tells the tale of using these rivers to move goods from Pittsburgh to the Great Lakes in the mid-1800s. Another popular historic attraction is the Buhl Mansion, once the residence of local steel magnate Frank Buhl.
Agriculture has always played a big role in the community, and the Mercer County Agricultural and Manufacturing Society of Stoneboro organized a fair in 1868 to promote that trade. Today the Stoneboro Fair, which boasts the slogan, “Always on Labor Day,” is one of the oldest end-of-summer celebrations in the country.
