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Living History

Posted on Sep 21, 2008

LIVE DISPLAYS — Kaitlyn Bohannon, Eugraine Brown and Kayla Beaver demonstrate making sauerkraut and pickled cabbage at last year’s Heritage Days. There are plenty of activities and interesting trades to check out over the two days of the annual event on the former Michael Freeland farm.

TURBOTVILLE — This year marks the 27th annual celebration of Heritage Days by the Warrior Run-Fort Freeland Heritage Society.

It will be held from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 4 and from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 5. Heritage Days is held on the former Michael Freeland farm, behind the Warrior Run High School, which is also the site of the bloody battle of Fort Freeland. Additional events will be held at the Warrior Run Church, just down of the high school.

Over 200 costumed performers present the native Scots/Irish/German culture through craft, music and food demonstrations. These craftspersons will be demonstrating many wood, fiber, metal and food skills. Many of the younger performers are part of the Apprentice/Mentor program of the Heritage Society.

Last year, the Fort Freeland Flickers, who are a sheep-to-shawl weaving group, won several state awards at the Pennsylvania Farm Show. They will be demonstrating their hand-spun, hand-dyed and hand-woven shawls this year at Heritage Days. Other new presenters are Vicki Egli, with 19th century medicinal and culinary herbs, David and Catherine Dodds, 18th century gunsmiths, Wanda Gardner doing rug weaving on a table-top loom, Marshall Rumbaugh demonstrating stone and butter print carving and the Seifried family presenting leather and horn work. There will be an auction at 4 that Saturday to benefit the Apprentice/Mentor program. This auction will feature antiques, crafts and food items and has been a popular addition to the Heritage Days program.

This year marks the return of an early 19th century pewter communion set which was used by the congregation of the Warrior Run Church. This set is on long term loan from the Northumberland Co. Historical Society. The communion set, along with a large collection of pictures of the Warrior Run Church from the mid-20th century will be on display. At 10 a.m. Sunday, the Heritage Society welcomes the Rev. Paul Smith to the pulpit of the Warrior Run Church. He and members of the Watsontown Presbyterian Church will present an authentic early Presbyterian church and communion. Joining the Presbyterians this year are two Civil War re-enacting groups: Cooper’s Battery B and the 3rd Pennsylvania Volunteer Light Artillery.

New this year is a greatly enlarged Native American village with authentic music, crafts and culture. Boy Scout Troop 37 of Mooresburg is building a replica of a Native American longhouse next to the village. They will be joined by the tents of the frontier sutlers and blanket traders.

The Pennsylvania Canal Society will be presenting an interactive display featuring the history and structure of the West Branch Canal. They will be joined by the “John Waldron”, an authentic 1860s canal packet boat which was discovered near Northumberland. The boat was recovered and restored by the Muncy Historical Society, who will tell the miraculous story of the award-winning project to save the boat.

Source: Standard Journal News


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