So here we are once again!
And how exciting it all is!
As I've oft repeated, celebrating the 4th of July is second only to Christmas for me, as far as holidays go. Being the lover of history that I am, how can such a day go without celebration?
But my festivities usually go for more than just the one day.
This year it began for me on the 29th of June when my daughter & I visited Greenfield Village. 'Twas a Father's Day gift for she & I to spend the day together, and she knows how much I love that open-air museum - she sorta grew up there herself, to be honest - so I decided to dress in my colonial clothes for this visit, which she expected.
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| I feel like The Spirit of '76! The Bicentennial Man! |
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| Must've been a bumper crop for the use of madder for dye last season, for the three of us - myself, Roy, and Chuck - all are wearing orange waistcoats! |
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| Chuck and Roy are working on a second saw horse. Roy is using a draw knife to strip off the bark of the log. |
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| Here am I standing near the Firestone corn field, the corn here is definitely knee high by the 4th of July! |
Such a wonderful Father's Day gift at the beginning of the 4th of July weekend.
But before the DSO performance began, I hoofed it down to my favorite house to get an evening shot:
And then the fireworks began:
A bit quieter, that's for sure. But any time a father can spend with his grown children is the best.
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| My daughter standing on the cellar door of the 1810 Hank's Silk Mill in 2007 and in 2023. Back when we used to camp only feet away from this spot during Civil War Remembrance, she, along with her Civil War reenacting friends, used to play right here. Naturally we had to get a more up-to-date shot! |
The above Greenfield Village pictures were taken on June 29 (aside from the 2007 shot of my daughter), so now we'll move up a couple days - - - - - -
The most eventful parts of our Independence Day bash began in earnest on July 3, for that's when my wife & I, along with three of our four kids, and one of our two daughters-in-law, went to Greenfield Village for the awesome Salute to America extravaganza, an event has been going on for over 30 years. As is written on The Henry Ford page: “Begin your evening by walking through Greenfield Village at your own pace while listening to musical ensembles perform across the venue. At dusk, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra takes center stage on the Village Green for a triumphant musical performance in celebration of Independence Day. The evening ends with a stirring “1812” Overture performance, cannon fire and a brilliant fireworks finale.”
Patty & I dressed the part, once again (as we did last year) and enjoyed the musical variety and festive atmosphere of the Village.
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| Yes, it was pretty doggone hot and muggy, and yes we were hot in our clothing. But we wear natural fibers - linen, thin wool, and light cotton - so we survive pretty okay. |
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| Come let's stroll... |
It was a fine evening indeed, and I did enjoy the smiles Patty & I received from patrons there, for aside from a fife & drum corps, we were the only ones representing the founding generation! And we met folks from other countries, including Mexico and France, who thanked us for dressing as we did and even took photos with us!
I was even interviewed by The Detroit News (copy and paste this link into your task bar):
https://www.detroitnews.com/videos/media/video/2023/07/04/greenfield-villages-salute-america/12205548002/?fbclid=IwAR1-tbNy4gfg95UDt4pmtZ-sQD5JGw7Q-JYwTJ7djMkKpx69bbDWh1HWJ2A
then click the top video when you get to the page if you want to hear and see this raspy voiced old man, and even catch my beautiful wife and I strolling!
I love all the festivities in this holiday celebration at Greenfield Village, but it's the (mostly) period music heard throughout the place that made it as special as it was, so we walked around and listened to and watched the performers:
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| JJ played 19th century fiddle music in the yard of the Henry Ford Birthplace. |
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| The Dodworth Saxhorn Band performed 19th century brass band music. |
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| And just up the road a piece we have Ragtime Piano Music as performed by Taslimah Bey. Ragtime Music seems to have gone the wayside. I remember when I was a young teen, Scott Joplin's "The Entertainer," as performed by Marvin Hamlisch, hit number 3 on the Billboard top pop singles charts in 1974; it was all over the radio. I bought the 45 record myself! This ragtime piano song, written in 1902, was a smash hit in the age of Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and Aerosmith! And, um...ice cream trucks like to play it. But that's not such a bad thing, for young ones will know and recognize the tune! Keeping it fresh in everyone's mind... |
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| Over near the Village Green we were entertained by the 1st Michigan Fife & Drum Corps, playing music mainly of the Revolutionary War period. The only people besides Patty & I dressed 1776. |
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| Moving along we had traditional string band music as played by Picks & Sticks. |
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| Not far from Picks & Sticks I very much enjoyed hearing the songs and stories by Reverend Robert Jones, who performed 1920s and 1930s blues. It sounded perfect coming from this old Mattox porch. With each song there was a musical history lesson - yes! |
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| On the other side of the Village was a group known as The Village Cruisers, who played and sang mostly 1950s pop and other standards. |
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| Always a favorite, we stopped and listened - and even sang along - to traditional old-timey standards by way of vocals, fiddle, guitar, banjo, hammered dulcimer, and autoharp as performed by Neil Woodward and Ranka Mulkern there on the Eagle Tavern porch. |
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| Picture time again for my wife and I! |
As the sun began to set and dusk set in...
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| People began to settle on their blankets and lawn chairs for the big event: The Detroit Symphony Orchestra. This is only a portion of the crowd who came out this July 3rd. |
But before the DSO performance began, I hoofed it down to my favorite house to get an evening shot:
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| It wouldn't be me at Greenfield Village if I didn't visit Daggett! As the sun goes down... Now, please understand: there were no electric lights of any kind in the 18th century; colonial-era streetlights were lit by candles placed inside a glass vessel, which kept the candle from being blown out by wind. Benjamin Franklin designed one that was four-sided, with four separate panes of glass, so that if one pane of glass was broken, the lamp did not need to be entirely replaced, and might not even blow out. The man was a true genius! |
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| The DSO performed pop and classical standards beautifully. But it was when the first notes of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture were heard that the crowd knew what was about to happen. The fifteen-minute overture is best known for its climactic volley of cannon fire (which they had there at Greenfield Village - actual cannons!), ringing chimes (using the bell of the old school house where Henry Ford went to school in the 1860s, as well as the bell in the steeple of the Martha-Mary Chapel, cast in 1834 by none other than Joseph Warren Revere - the son of Paul Revere!), as well as a brass fanfare finale. This well-known piece has also "become a common accompaniment to fireworks displays on the United States' Independence Day."
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| I took many fireworks photos, but these are my three favorites. |
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| This one has an almost ethereal, outer space feel to it. |
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| A beautiful "illumination," as John Adams called them. |
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| And this just may be an annual shot~ Colonial Patty & I watching the fireworks...from behind. |
On the way out of the Village, I saw horses in the fenced in area so I stopped for a pose.
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| I asked him if he could be my reenactor horse when I portray Paul Revere during the Patriot's Day reenactment we have every April at Mill Race Village. He said, "Nay." Oh well - it doesn't hurt to ask! |
The following day was the BIG day itself - the 4th of July: Independence Day!
We in the colonial living history group, Citizens of the American Colonies, have made quite a name for ourselves at Mill Race Village in Northville, Michigan during our Independence Day celebration as well as during the Patriot's Day reenactment (in April). But we're not the only group there, and I so very much appreciate all of the reenactors who have supported me in these historic endeavors, whether with their reenacting group or coming solo, for it is all of us together who greatly bring the colonial past alive at both events.
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| I created a street of flags. Over the past few years I accumulated replicated historic flags, and here at Mill Race Village I put up ten of them across from each other along the roadside: The Betsy Ross Flag The Gadsden Flag The Benington (Spirit of '76) Flag The Pine Tree (Appeal to Heaven) Flag The Grand Union Flag The Liberty & Union Flag The Massachusetts Minuteman Flag The First Navy Jack Flag The Francis Hopkinson Flag The Bedford Flag (The bunting you see in the top photo on the left on the lamp post is one that Mill Race put up)
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| And here I am holding up the Bedford Flag, of which its history I very recently learned about. |
The Bedford Flag is the oldest known flag in the North American colonies. The exact age and origin of the flag are not known, but physical and historical evidence are consistent with a date early in the 18th century.
It is associated with the Minutemen of Bedford, Massachusetts, and the Battles of Lexington and Concord of 1775. However, there is no documentary evidence, either from testimonies, depositions or diaries written at the time, or in participants' later memoirs, mentioning any such flag flown at the battles of Lexington and Concord by either side. A Lieutenant of the British expedition to Concord noted a liberty pole with a cap and an unknown flag on it standing on a hill near Concord center. British grenadiers chopped down the pole and destroyed the flag.
With the passage of time, the Bedford flag came to be a political symbol of the early American Revolution and, it is said, specifically the militia's resistance at Concord.
As the only militia flag present at the battle according to tradition, the flag could be the inspiration for the opening lines of Ralph Waldo Emerson's Concord Hymn:
By the rude bridge that arched the flood,
Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled,
Here once the embattled farmers stood,
And fired the shot heard round the world.
Besides the Bedford flag in the above photo, here are the others flown in the street of flags at Mill Race (with links to where you can learn more about them):
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| The Betsy Ross flag - 1776 |
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| The Francis Hopkinson Flag - 1777 |
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| The First Navy Jack Flag - exact year unknown |
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| The Gadsden Flag - 1775 |
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| The Pine Tree Flag - used during the American Revolutionary War |
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| The Grand Union Flag - 1775 |
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| The Taunton Flag - 1774 |
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| The Culpeper Flag - 1775 |
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| The Spirit of '76 / Bennington Flag - year unknown possibly 1777 (Battle of Bennington) or 1812 (to spark sentiment) or even for the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence (1826). |
These are the flags we had waving in the breeze on the 4th of July at Mill Race Village. I am pleased that so many visitors enjoyed seeing them, many of which had their picture taken with those they liked (or were most familiar with).
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| Charlotte learned how to snip paper just right to create the style of stars used in the canton of these early American flags, and she taught visitors how to do the same. Charlotte called it "the 'one snip' star making craft." It was a very popular spot! |
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| Christy had folks sign the Declaration of Independence. This, too, was a very popular (and patriotic) thing to do! |
So not too long ago I read a book about the language usage of days gone by, and I learned of a few examples of the differences in our speech patterns from the period of the American Revolution. Robert Burchfield, a lexicographer, language scholar, and writer/author, who edited the Oxford English Dictionary for thirty years to 1986, and was chief editor from 1971, said that George Washington probably sounded as British as Lord North, England's Prime Minister from 1770 to 1782, and Lord North probably sounded more American than any British minister today.
Just a small example in the older wording pronunciation: the words tea and speak would have been pronounced as "tay" and "spake." He also says that certain and merchant were pronounced as "sartin" and "marchant."
Bath and path would have sounded very much in the American way as we say them today. Burchfield also feels that the late 18th century folk would have given r's their full value in words such as cart and horse.
An interesting bit to our language is that we Americans still use certain terminology today that was common in the Revolutionary period, though has since died in England, such as gotten (for got), fall (for autumn), mad for angry, and even trash for rubbish (among other words).
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| Lynn there in the center represented Betsy Ross. Now no one knows for sure who actually designed and sewed the first US flag - was it Betsy Ross or was it Francis Hopkinson or was it someone else? - and good & valid arguments can be made for each. Of course, everyone thinks they're right, even without proof. Me? I, too, see valid arguments on all sides so that's why I brought along both the Betsy Ross flag as well as the Francis Hopkinson flag to help spur on discussions. |
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| Ken the Minuteman and Mark the native American. |
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| A few members of the 1st Pennsylvania move along the road. |
Mill Race is actually a Victorian village, but I believe we did a fine job converting it into an east coast town from the good old colony days for this Independence Day.
The road here could be a lane in any 1776 town or village of America...from colony to state...this is part of what we hoped to recreate.
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| Over at the Continental Camp, folks could sign enlistment papers to join the Continental Army. |
My special moment was when I spoke for a few minutes before Dr. Benjamin Franklin recited the Declaration of Independence. I gave information on the Declaration and how it all came to be. I began by asking the audience members to place themselves in the mindset of those who were around - who were actually there during that month of July back in 1776; I told them that the here & now is gone, for this would be the best way to understand the excitement this declaration caused.
I spoke a bit on the French & Indian War and how our King George in England wanted to tax us for it. I quickly ran through the various taxes placed upon the colonists over the coming decade: Stamp Act, Sugar Act, Townshend Acts, the Tea Act, and the Intolerable Acts, and of how this all caused tension and unrest - many colonists thought war with Great Britain was inevitable.
I did a quick overview of the battles at Lexington & Concord and Breed's Hill, all leading to Thomas Paine's pamphlet, Common Sense, leading the way to calls for Independence. I commented on the Committee of Five, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson, along with Robert Livingston and Roger Sherman, who had drafted the formal declaration to be ready when Congress voted. I spoke on the jumpstart of John Adams where he stated that he thought July 2 would be the date to remember, but how it was on July 4th that Congress adopted the document, hence the date on the Declaration itself. I noted that this was the first time that we see "The United States of America" - and I choked up a little upon stating that. I love my country - through thick and thin - and this still gives me goosebumps.
I then explained how the Declaration of Independence was delivered throughout the 13 colonies and of the responses of those who heard it for the first time: the tearing down and burning of the King's Coat of Arms, the firing of cannons and muskets, the ringing of bells, bonfires, and, in New York, the overturning of a statue of King George, where it was destroyed and melted down into 42,088 bullets, to which the audience cheered! I loved that!
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I then recited a letter written by Abigail Adams and sent to her husband John about the reactions in Boston, which also included cannons, muskets, bonfires, and parties throughout. But I included her line: "Thus ends royal authority in this state, and all the people shall say Amen." And the people in front of me all said, "Amen." |
Just wow---tears welled up at the patriotism felt here. With all of the hatred toward our country in the news as of late, on this day - the 4th of July, 2023 - there was patriotism.
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| At the end of my moment I introduced Dr. Benjamin Franklin, one of those five committee members who had his hand on writing the Declaration. Franklin gave a reading of the Declaration of Independence. |
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The text of the Declaration, from "When in the course of human events" through "our sacred honor", is approximately 1,320 words long. Some versions of the text add, subtract, or change words, which affects the word count (the earliest/1st printings as compared to the engrossed copy from August 2nd, 1776). Also, if you include the title from the engrossed parchment, "In Congress, July 4, 1776. The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America," the total word count is 1,337. And our Benjamin Franklin has it completely memorized! |
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| Members of the local militia/Continentals marched to the Village Green, for they had a surprise for the ending of the reading. |
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| As soon as Dr. Franklin had finished his reciting, I yelled out: Three cheers for Benjamin Franklin! Three cheers for George Washington!! Three cheers for the new United States of America!!! |
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| Minuteman Ken threw his hat into the air and... |
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| ...began to fire his musket, with Richard right there beside him. Gotta love it when one can capture the fire as we see in Lynn's photo below of Richard:  |
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| Tony's men fired as well! And the church & school bells were a-ringing! |
Then the other members of the local militia/Continentals, guided by Tony, marched to Ken and Richard and all fired their muskets together, much to the delight of the crowd!
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| If you look closely you can see that I caught the flash in the pan as well as a few sparks flying. Yes, firing these guns can be dangerous business, but the men take great care. |
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| Seeing the American fighting men of the Revolutionary War up close is simply awesome! And to hear their musketry...history comes to life! |
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| A heartfelt thanks must go to the ladies who always come out and support my endeavors. Yes, I am the thorn, here, amongst the roses! |
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| And thank you's must go to these good folk as well. Each and every reenactor that participated means so much to me. |
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Tony spoke to Pam about the 1st Continental Regiment/1st Pennsylvania Regiment Flag: the origin of this flag’s design can be traced to the beginning of 1776 in the vicinity of Boston. The description for this flag reads: "Every regiment is to have a standard and colours. Ours standard is to be a deep green ground, the device a tiger partly enclosed by toils, attempting the pass, defended by a hunter armed with a spear (in white), on crimson field the motto Domari nolo.2" |
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Tony is wearing his green and red regimental coat as a Lieutenant of the 1st Continental Regiment in 1776. I kept on being referred to as Paul Revere throughout the day, so I suppose I will go with that! |
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| Greg Roth was spot on perfect in his look! |
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| As I always try to do: I try to have our participant group photo. Unfortunately, most had already left by the time we snapped this picture. Perhaps next year we'll try to get one earlier - - I think the public would like it as well. |
On the drive home...
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| ...a few of us decided to stop at the local Red Robin restaurant for a late lunch. The staff came out and also took pictures with us as well. |
I love what author Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote in her wonderful book, Farmer Boy, in her description of the manner the Wilder family celebrated the 4th of July in the 1870s (and, yes, it is just a story, but I believe there is more truth here than anyone may realize):
BOOM! The cannons leaped backward, the air was full of flying grass and weeds. Everybody was exclaiming about what a loud noise they had made.
"That's the noise that made the Redcoats run!" Mr. Paddock said to Father.
"Maybe," Father said, tugging his beard. "But it was muskets that won the Revolution. And don't forget it was axes and plows that made this country."
"That's so, come to think of it," Mr. Paddock said.
That night when they were going to the house with milk, Almanzo asked Father: "Father, how was it axes and plows that made this country? Didn't we fight England for it?"
"We fought for Independence, son," Father said. "It was farmers that took that country and made it America."
"How?" Almanzo asked.
"Spaniards were soldiers that only wanted gold. The French were fur traders, wanting to make quick money. And England was busy fighting wars. But we were farmers, son; we wanted the land. It was farmers that went over the mountains, and cleared the land, and settled it, and farmed it, and hung on to their farms. It's the biggest country in the world, and it was farmers who took all that country and made it America. Don't you ever forget that."
Yes. That's it in a nutshell, in my opinion.
So it was during this 2023 4th of July weekend that we again venerated members of the founding generation, some known, some not-so-well known, in our own special living history manner.
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| Stephens Drive near my house is all "dressed" for the holiday. |
And so is my home - bring on the evening's celebration of fireworks!
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| My two buntings, the Betsy Ross flag, and the Benington "Spirit of '76" flag are up and ready for the illuminations! |
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| Now I know that these are beautiful over the lake or out in the country or wherever, but, unfortunately, not everyone can enjoy such a luxury. However, I would put the ones I saw in my own neighborhood against any other city area. And those I saw at Greenfield Village the night before were out-of-this-world great! |
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| But my little Detroit suburb of Eastpointe did wonderfully! |
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| This has a look of outer space. |
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| And then "BAM!" The sky lit up! Happy Independence Day! Happy 4th of July!! |
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| Of course, I had to get my annual flag and fireworks pictures! |
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| My wife's roses in the foreground... |
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| And one more night time shot of my house; the buntings look pretty cool but the flags are a bit too dark. |
In looking to the future, let's keep an eye and ear on that July 4 three years from now - in 2026, for it will be the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence!
250 years!
I have personally been working on building up that celebration for what Congress is calling the Semiquincentennial (a fancy word for the 250th anniversary). It's hard to believe that it's been 50 years since we celebrated the Bicentennial back in 1976! I don't expect the Semiquincentennial to be quite as big as 50 years ago, but I would like to see us put our all into it and make it something our kids and even grandkids will remember fondly.
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| Are you ready for the Semiquincentennial? |
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| John Adams Died July 4, 1826 |
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| Thomas Jefferson Died July 4, 1826 |
In 2026 there will be another commemoration - the 200th anniversary of the deaths of two extremely important founders: Thomas Jefferson and John Adams. That these two men, both of who played a vital role in the founding of our nation and took part in the writing of the Declaration of Independence, died not only on the same day, but they died on July 4, in 1826, exactly 50 years to the date the Declaration of Independence itself was adopted by the Continental Congress, and that is something that I feel is more than a coincidence - Providence, mayhaps? - concerning these two men.
Chilling...
Of course, the celebrations of the 4th of July/Independence Day centers around the founders of our country.
Well...outside of barbecue parties and fireworks.
And I've read a bit about the thoughts of a few current known historians on who exactly were the Founding Fathers, and thoughts on using that term.
One writer, Thomas Fleming, wrote: "By consensus, most historians limit the narrow definition to six: Washington, Franklin, Adams, Jefferson, Hamilton, and Madison. A broader definition would include many worthwhile individuals, such as Sam Adams, John Hancock, Joseph Warren, Nathanael Greene, etc."
However, another historian named Ray Raphael wrote: "I think the term trite. That said, I write about the “Founding Era.” It is interesting to note that the Founding Generation (no alliteration, but that term does have meaning) did not see the “Founding Fathers” as we do now. John Adams was despised by half the people, Jefferson by the other half. At first, the men Americans most venerated were military heroes, Washington of course, and many local favorites: in New England, Old Put, the Fighting Quaker, Henry Knox, and the martyred Joseph Warren; in the South, Lighthorse Harry, the Swamp Fox, the Carolina Gamecock. Then, with Jefferson’s ascent to power and the politically inspired veneration of the Declaration of Independence, the 56 “signers.” Not until the 50th Jubilee, when both Adams and Jefferson died on the same day, did Americans begin to feature the small crew we know today."
And historical author, J. L. Bell, wrote (in part): "They couldn’t have achieved a mass political movement, independence, and a new republic without the participation of large swaths of the population as soldiers, farmers, laborers, homemakers, and parents raising the next generation. The Founders created a new society, not just a structure of governance, and I include everyone who was involved in that creation within that term."
And there are other's opinions on defining just what - or who - were the Founding Fathers in an article on the excellent historical site, Journal of the American Revolution. What I chose here by Fleming, Raphael, and Bell tend to be more consistent with my own opinions. Though I may use the term "Founding Fathers" in a general way when speaking or writing, I oftentimes will include or simply say "Founding Generation" just as much, for the more research I do, the more I realize it wasn't only a few men who founded this country, but, rather, a whole swathe of people; a generation that consisted upward of a million and a half to over two million people (according to the US Population Chart denoting population numbers from 1760 and 1770). Each person of this generation who lived in what would become the United States, was a Founder. Yes, even Loyalists, for they helped to build this nation in their own way as well.
I do, however, consider the aforementioned men (Washington, Franklin, Adams, Jefferson, Hamilton, and Madison among a few others) who literally formed the United States of America, leaders.
Truly amazing leaders at that.
So as you can see, my Independence Day Holiday was pretty filled. Come July 5th, I was so tired...and walked like a 100 year old man. Yeah, I have lower back issues and sciatica, but I didn't let that bother me. Sometimes it's mind over matter, and though I did pay for it, it was well worth it. As Carly Simon once sang, "I haven't got time for the pain."
That's true for me, too.
In fact, on the 6th of July I went back to Greenfield Village and was able to snap a bit of the aftermath of the patriotic Firestone Farm:
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| Life in early 1880s eastern Ohio... |
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| Farmer Todd and Larissa posed for me on the side porch. |
The weather wasn't bad for the most part. Yeah, maybe a little warm for my taste, but it didn't rain as it did the few days previous. In fact, Greenfield Village had to cancel its July 2nd fireworks due to the downpours, and yet, the 3rd and 4th, though very warm and muggy, were dry and mostly sunny. So, yep, no complaints from me - I believe Providence was shining down upon us with the sun!
There is only one holiday I like more than Independence Day, and that is Christmas. Just everything about the 4th of July makes me feel happy, proud, patriotic, and historic, all at the same time. And throughout this entire three-day weekend, everyone we saw was happy, smiling, and saying "Happy 4th!"
I love it.
With the semiquincentennial (gotta get used to saying that: semi---quin---centennial) of our nation's birth only three years away, I like to think of this weekend as a sort of precursor of celebrations to come. In fact, I already have plans in my head on how we can celebrate in 2026. But you'll have to wait a few years for that.
Until next time, see you in time.
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| Within these two photos you see my five grandchildren. I gave the three oldest each an American flag (the two youngest are too young to have the eye-poking sticks the flags are attached to, though I stuck one in the car seat of my youngest grandbaby for a picture). Not that my son and daughter-in-law wouldn't do the same, but their lives at this time are consumed with, well, life, so I suppose it's Papa's way to help!  Yep---God Bless America! |
Many thanks to Charlotte Bauer, Chris Robey, Lynn Anderson, and Richard Reaume for allowing me to use a few of their snapshots among my own.
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Many, many thanks must go to our host, Northville's historic Mill Race Village. To learn more about this wonderful open-air museum, please click HERE
Here are a few links you may be interested in checking out:
Celebrating the 4th of July 2012 - Before I began reenacting the 18th century/1770s/Revolutionary War, I reenacted the 1860s/Civil War era (still do!), and on this 100+ degree July 4th, a few of us were very hot in all of our period clothing and celebrated at Greenfield Village. In fact, according to the Detroit News: "The hottest Fourth of July on record in Detroit was in 2012 with 102 degrees." And here's how it went for us that day.
Celebrating the 4th of July 2013 - A few of us returned to Greenfield Village in our 1860s clothing for this year's celebration. The temperature was much more reasonable than the previous year!
Celebrating the 4th of July 2014 - For my first time, I wore colonial clothes on the 4th of July, once again at Greenfield Village, and a few other colonials joined me. This, for me, felt perfect.
Celebrating the 4th of July 2015 - Celebrating similar to 2014, though we have a different set of colonials coming to the Village this year.
Celebrating the 4th of July 2016 - A few of us dressed colonial while others dressed Victorian, then we all found our way back to Greenfield Village. We were a sort of time-line.
Celebrating the 4th of July 2017 - We had a such a good time at Greenfield Village, then we went to Mill Race Village for our first time to check out their celebration! We even got a thank you in their newsletter: "Thank you to the Citizens of The American Colonies for bringing Ben Franklin and friends to remind us of where and how this country began."
Celebrating the 4th of July 2018 - Pretty much a repeat of last year, only we had different folks join us at Greenfield Village and we had a larger group - a much larger group! - join us at Mill Race Village, where we made quite a splash.
Celebrating the 4th of July 2019 - This was the best 4th of July yet! We had a very large group of colonials come out to Mill Race Village and celebrated America in a way it hadn't been done in over 40 years, I'm sure! What fun we all had!
Celebrating the 4th of July 2020 - 2020...the year of Corona Virus/Covid-19. Nothing - absolutely nothing - was going on, or so one would think. However, when Greenfield Village finally opened its gates on that July 2nd---just in time for the 4th!---I was ecstatic! And then a few of us decided to come out in our colonial-era clothing and celebrate the 4th of July as we've been doing, only as a smaller group.
But we did it!
Celebrating the 4th of July 2021 - The Covid fear was still reigning o'er the land, but it had much less of a grip, and our celebrations of Independence Day began to grow once again. We went back to Greenfield Village. We went "unofficially" back to Mill Race Village on July 5th, which was the Federal celebration, though with a smaller group than two years ago. There was nothing going on, though a number of visitors were enjoying the bright sunshiny day and strolled through the park.
And my wife and I even paid a visit to Crossroads Village.
Celebrating the 4th of July 2022 - This was a full weekend celebration! Beginning by watching the parade in Lexington, Michigan, traveling to Greenfield Village's Salute to America the next day, then having the largest 4th of July celebration since the Bicentennial in 1976 at Mill Race Village the following day!
Celebrating America's Bicentennial - this is what I wrote in 2022 and shows my Bicentennial collection of Americana collectibles as well as has some fun stories from friends on how they celebrated that magical year back in 1976.
4th of July: The Red, White, and Blue (and the Bicentennial, too!) - Written in 2023, this is a sort of "part 2" to the previous Bicentennial posting, showing lots of red, white, and blue and more of the Bicentennial collectibles I've obtained.
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"Something special happened nearly two and a half centuries ago. But is that story being told and promoted? And to do that, you also have to be willing to promote what makes America special. That's not very PC/woke these days, but maybe it's time to start celebrating America again, especially in the run up to the 250th in 2026."
And here are links to help you to understand this holiday's history:
Declaring Independence: The Spirits of '76 - I had a conversation with Benjamin Franklin for this posting. Check it out and see! There is a lot of cool information about the writing of the Declaration and of those who signed it.
Unsung Patriots: The Printing of the Declaration of Independence - We have all heard on how those who signed the Declaration of Independence were putting their own lives on the line by signing such a treasonous document, right? But what about those who printed it? They were also putting their lives on the line as well. And just how did they spread the word and distribute this most important of all America's papers? How long did it take to get it from the printer's to other cities and towns?
Yep---you'll find the answers here!
The Great Declaration of July 4th, 1776: Reactions From Those Who Were There - So now we've learned about the Declaration of Independence and of its printing in the above posts. But how did the public respond when they first heard it??
Independence Day: A "Passion for the Past" History of This Grand Holiday - So, just what were the causes for the Founding Generation to want to claim Independence from Britain, and what were some of the events that occurred?
Here is a post of links to other postings I wrote on those issues.
August 2nd, 1776: The Signing of the Declaration of Independence - Contrary to popular belief, the Declaration was not signed on the 4th of July.
Wha---?
Yep--it's true. Here, click the link and see for yourself.
With Liberty and Justice For All - A pretty amazing collection of American history displayed inside the enormous Henry Ford Museum, and many of the earlier items displayed here were a part of the The Struggle and the Glory exhibit from the Bicentennial.
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