06/14/2026
We love telling this story.
In 1860, a famed German-born balloonist named Professor John Steiner was staying at the Crawford House, a hotel in Meadville run by a man named Samuel Thurston. Steiner's stories of flight captivated Samuel so completely that the Professor agreed to train him, and Samuel acquired a balloon of his own.
His neighbors thought he'd lost his mind. Over the next 25 years, he proved them wrong 215 times—every ascension free of charge, at fairs, exhibitions, and Fourth of July celebrations across the region.
His son Alic, born a year after Samuel's first flight, followed his father into the sky. Alic's very first public launch in 1891 snagged on Meadville's brand-new streetlight wiring and never left the ground. He kept going. He built his own balloons, including one he called the "Meadville" — 576 yards of muslin, 64 feet tall. He once flew 180 miles to a forest near Emporium and had to take the train home. And on at least one occasion, he launched a balloon from the roof of the Meadville Market House—the same building still standing downtown today.
In 1988, during Meadville's bicentennial, a group of local volunteers decided the Thurston name deserved more than a footnote. They launched the Thurston Classic, tied it to Father's Day weekend, and it's been here every year since.
This Thursday night, the 36th edition opens with the Night Glow on the Allegheny College fields. It's one of our proudest traditions, and the kind of story that reminds us why this county means so much to the people who know it.
🔗 visitcrawford.org/the-thurston-classic-meadvilles-historic-hot-air-balloon-festival/
