Tamaqua Summerfest is returning to where it began — Broad Street.

“We want to bring it back to what it was — plus some,” said Justin Bailey, a Summerfest planning member from the Tamaqua Odd Fellows.

The Father’s Day family-friendly festival featuring food, crafts, music, train rides and a car show will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.

To make way for the dozens of vendors and thousands of attendees, West Broad Street will be closed to traffic between South Railroad and Lehigh streets.

“Vendors are going to set up smack dab on the road, kind of where the cars park,” Bailey said. “People will be able to walk down the center of the street.”

In recent years, Summerfest and the Tamaqua Heritage Festival had been held on South Railroad Street.

“We have a lot of new vendors and it’s going to be brought back to the splendor it used to be,” Bailey said.

Approximately 35 craft vendors will be on hand, in addition to food vendors galore.

“We will have so much food,” he noted. Among the offerings will be pork and beef barbecue, potato pancakes, chicken, fresh cut french fries, pierogies, hand made pretzels and funnel fries.

“The South Ward Fire Company will be there with a big menu,” he said.

Polka Joe Manjack will broadcast WMGH’s Magic Polka Machine live from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. from the Tamaqua Historical Society Museum, which will be open.

After that, Bailey said, live music will be presented from 1 to 5 p.m. by a number of performers at the corner of Hunter and Spruce streets.

The Tamaqua Street Machine Association 2.0 will have a car show at the St. Luke’s parking lot on South Railroad Street.

And as in previous years, the Reading and Northern Railroad will offer train rides from the Tamaqua Train Station to the Hometown High Bridge at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. A 1 p.m. trip will travel to New Ringgold. Boarding for the 70 minute, round-trip rides begins 30 minutes before departure.

The Hegarty Blacksmith Shop will be open as well.

Sadly, Bailey said, one person will be missing at the festival.

“Most people know that Barton Fritzinger, who was known as ‘Buster the Clown,’ passed away on New Year’s Eve,” Bailey said. “He has been a rock for decades at the festivals.”

Fritzinger’s family had requested that memorial donations be made to the Carbon County Friends of Animals in Jim Thorpe.

“In his memory, we will have a table set up of memories of Buster, and a jar to donate to the Carbon County Friends of Animals,” Bailey said. “I’m hoping Tamaqua can show their full support for the countless balloon animals and hats he has made for generations, and we can show our love toward him for this worthy cause.”

The Odd Fellows took over planning the long-running festivals from the Tamaqua Historical Society last year.

“We’ve been in the community since 1843,” Bailey said. “Tamaqua was started around 1800, so we were there almost from the beginning, and we’ve always had such a large presence in town. It’s kind of nice to use this to bring that presence back.”

Bailey said the main teachings of the International Order of Odd Fellows are to elevate and improve the character of mankind.

“And what a good way to do that by having a festival for Tamaqua where everybody can come out and enjoy each other, the vendors and the food — and just have a nice time,” Bailey said. “It’s to celebrate Tamaqua.”

While the Odd Fellows hosted last year’s festivals on South Railroad Street, this is the first time it will have one on Broad Street.

“It’s our first time downtown and only the third time we are doing it,” Bailey said. “We’re just regular, everyday people — we’re not experts.”

As a result, he asked for patience from the public, and noted that the street will reopen sometime after 6 p.m. Detours will be in place until then.