Eggbert: How a talking egg became a beloved Orange County holiday tradition

There are many holiday traditions in the Hudson Valley, from cutting down a fresh Christmas tree at a local farm, to visiting festively decorated historic homes. There are parades to attend, a visit with Santa for the kiddos, and of course, no holiday is complete without seeing Eggbert, the talking egg, in New Windsor.

Wait? A talking egg is a Christmas tradition? Yes, and it’s steeped in history, dating all the way back to the 1930s.

“Eggbert is a talking animatronic egg that was developed and built in 1930 by Cornell University to help promote the egg industry,” explains Annie Shoop, the marketing manager at Devitt's Nursery in New Windsor. “He even made an appearance at the World's Fair.”

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In 1971, Jack Devitt, the then-owner of Devitt's Nursery purchased Eggbert from Cornell.

“That’s when we really started doing Christmas on the farm and it became a tradition that took off right away,” said Shoop. “There was Macy’s in the city, but not many Christmas displays around here so it became really big.”

Visiting Eggbert every year has been a tradition for Amy Bornander, a 48-year-old resident of Montgomery, since she was a little girl. She visited him annually with her mother and sisters and has since brought her own children to visit the unique attraction. Bornander admits that she plans to visit this year, with or without any young family relatives that she can find to take with her.

“Eggbert is nostalgia,” said Bornander. “They have new exhibits now, but for me, it's about waiting in line, seeing him talk, and shopping in each little store. Each one of my kids has an Eggbert Christmas ornament that we hang on the tree every year. "

At Devitt's, the Christmas trail runs for half of the farm's 25 acres, (it has expanded this year); there is a barnyard, a new slot car track, and holiday shops. “There are also ice caves, walks through, Candyland, and farm animals to see,” said Shoop. “Around Christmas time Petunia has her babies, so who knows what will happen this year!”

Each year, between 20,000 and 30,000 visitors come to walk the trail, which ends with Eggbert. "The trail is really fun to walk through and see everything all lit up and decorated," said Bornander. "It's also a bit magical for the little kids to see this talking egg who is saying their name and asking them what they want for Christmas.”

The trail also includes Eggbert’s Post Office where visitors can write letters to Santa.

“This year we also expanded to make it ADA compliant so anybody can visit now,” said Shoop.

And this year, Eggbert has a friend. You can now meet EggClaire, another talking egg.

“Claire and Eggbert grew up next to each other on the farm back in the 30s,” Shoop explains of their backstory. “Their families had farms next to each other and when Eggbert went to the World's Fair, Claire did, as well. Eggbert introduced Santa Claus to Claire and she worked in the North Pole until reconnecting with Eggbert.”

Paul Halayko, the chief operating officer and president of the Newburgh Brewing Company said that Eggbert was as much a part of his Christmas as Santa Claus.

“He is a staple of the Orange County Christmas scene,” Halayko said. “When we went away to college or moved elsewhere, we would tell stories to people about this talking egg that came around every Christmas and most people would look at us like we had three heads, but now we're sharing the experience with our kids.”

What's not for the kids is the partnership between Devitt's Nursery and the Magnanini Winery, which has developed a special vintage for the holidays, and the Newburgh Brewing Company which has created a Christmas beer that pays homage to the legendary Eggbert.

“They flipped the idea a little bit, where they said they had a design for an angry version of Eggbert and five years ago that's how Angry Eggbert IPA was born,” said Halayko, who describes the beer as brewed with spruce needles, with flavors such as raspberries, pineapple, and grapefruit. “There’s a hint of spruce that really makes the beer ‘Christmassy.’”

Portions of the sales of Angry Eggbert IPA are used to purchase Christmas trees from Devitt's for families in need. “We invite families to let us know if they could use a little extra help this holiday season and maybe that extra help comes in the form of us buying their Christmas tree for them,” Halayko said. “And they go and buy it themselves. We're very happy to do it.”

Halayko plans to take his sons, five-year-old Bertie and three-year-old Hogan, to see Eggbert the same way he first saw him when he was around eight years old.

Christmas on the farm with Eggbert runs from Nov. 25 to Dec. 23, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tickets are $15 at the door and free for children under 3. Eggbert's working hours are 3-7 p.m. Fridays, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday. Find more information, including hours for the holiday shops on the Devitt's Nursery website, devittsnsy.com. The nursery is located at 56 Devitt Circle, New Windsor.

Lisa Iannucci is a Hudson Valley freelance writer.

This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Eggbert is back! Beloved holiday attraction returns to New Windsor