Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery - Lititz, Pennsylvania - first commercial pretzel bakery in the United States

Founded in 1861, the Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery was the first commercial pretzel bakery to operate in the United Sates. Originally, founder Julius Sturgis baked bread in his factory, and legend has it that a hobo passing through town gave him a pretzel recipe in exchange for a meal. Sturgis discovered that the recipe worked well, and added it to the business. After about a decade, the pretzels were so popular that he stopped making bread altogether to focus primarily on selling pretzels. Today, the company still uses this recipe and the old techniques originally used by the company's founder.

The bakery's building is on the National Register of Historic Places and was one of the original buildings in the city. It has a pegged floor, a musket that was once used to protect the home from Native Americans, wooden doors with iron hinges, and a carved panel staircase. The building dates back to 1784 and was originally owned by Er Bauet Von Peterkreiter.

Tourists can contact the Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery to take a tour of the facilities and learn a little about the pretzel-making process. They work with school groups, churches, families, scouts, and other small groups to provide a hands-on experience in the bakery. Each tour lasts approximately twenty minutes, and reservations are not needed for groups of less than 10 people, with groups of 30 or more being split into at least two separate groups for the tour. The parking outside of the bakery can accommodate buses, and the facility is fully handicapped accessible, so shoppers or tourists with disabilities can also enjoy the tour. The tour includes demonstrations, in which guests can take part by learning to twist a pretzel with a piece of dough, as well as historical reproductions of many of the old pretzel and bread making machines and photographs of the site throughout the years.

The Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery also has a small pretzel shop on site for guests who want to take a treat home. These pretzels are made by parent company Tom Sturgis Pretzels, which is located in Reading, Pennsylvania. The current bakery has been at this location since 1970, but the factory was originally moved to Reading in the 1920s by Julius Sturgis' grandson, Marriot "Tom'' Sturgis. Pretzel products available at the Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery store include chocolate covered pretzels, pretzel bits, handmade hard pretzels, low sodium pretzels, soy pretzels, sesame sticks, thick pretzel sticks, peanut butter filled pretzels, flavored pretzels, and whole grain pretzels. They also have other products, like cheese, cinnamon sugar sticks, chocolate, and holiday candy. These products, in addition to being available at the Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery and other retail locations, can also be purchased online and shipped nearly anywhere in the world.

Admission to the Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery costs $3 for adults and $2 for children. They are closed Sundays, New Year's Day, Christmas Day, and Thanksgiving Day, but otherwise open year-round. From January through mid-March, they are open from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM, Monday through Friday and from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM on Saturdays, with the last tour leaving 30 minutes before closing time. During the rest of the year, they're open from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Monday through Saturday. To learn more, interested guests can call 717-626-4354 or visit their website to book a tour online.