Lebanon County will welcome the new year with a tradition more than two and a half decades old that’s centered on a much-loved locally smoked meat.
The City of Lebanon will host the 27th annual New Year’s Eve Bologna Drop starting at 10 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 31, and wrapping up around midnight. The bologna, fastened to a disco ball constructed by E&E Metal Fabrication, will be displayed at 3 p.m. that day.
Locals will gather on South Eighth Street, between Chestnut and Cumberland streets, for a night of music entertainment with DJ Jim Payne as they await the countdown.
The first 500 people to arrive at the free-admission event will be given free glowsticks from Visit Lebanon Valley. Throughout the event, Smokey from Seltzer’s Smokehouse Meats will offer free samples while supplies last.
The Cool Beans Brews coffee truck will be parked at the event so attendees can purchase hot coffee. Heaters will be situated throughout the streets to keep people warm.
City Mayor Sherry Capello will also be in attendance.
“The City of Lebanon is proud to carry on the tradition of dropping a real Lebanon bologna on New Year’s Eve,” Capello told LebTown in an emailed statement.
“It is important to recognize our history and celebrate the more than 138 years of bologna making in our city! Many German and PA Dutch families, including mine, had their own secret recipes and smokehouses.”
Parking will be prohibited on Eighth and Walton streets from 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 31, to 1 a.m. Monday, Jan 1.
In addition, the following streets will be closed starting at 3 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 31, through the start of the new year:
- 8th Street, Cumberland to Chestnut streets
- Walton Street, Gannon to Liberty streets
The Seltzer’s Smokehouse Meats bologna used for the drop will be donated by the smokehouse that has been serving the Lebanon community for over a century to the Lebanon Rescue Mission post-drop.
“We are pleased that Seltzer’s Smokehouse Meats is the bologna maker for the drop. We thank them for stepping up last year, which allowed the New Year’s Eve tradition to keep going,” Capello said. “We appreciate their partnership and the many sponsors who make the event happen.”
The City of Lebanon, the Community of Lebanon Association, E&E Metal Fabrication, Eckert Seamans, Seltzer’s Smokehouse Meats, Visit Lebanon Valley and Arthur Funk & Sons, attorneys at law, are sponsoring this year’s bologna drop.
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