An American Celebration! has become one of the highlights of the New Hampshire summer season, attracting more than 3,000 visitors each year. Says Strawbery Banke president Larry Yerdon, "This is a wonderful family event that celebrates an important milestone in our national history. We're glad to be able to host the community on our site for such a unique and fun event."
All children as well as active members of the military and their families are admitted free to the event, thanks to the generosity of the event's signature sponsor, BAE Systems. The museum's Fourth of July celebration offers local families and visitors a unique opportunity to experience four centuries of New England life in grand style with exposure to music, games, living history, fare, and old-fashioned fun!
Festivities will kick off at Strawbery Banke at noon. This family-friendly event will feature traditional Irish music by Ballymac as well as Xtreme Polkas by Gary Szredzienski & The Serfs and patriotic music from the Seacoast Wind Ensemble. Special historic activities and demonstrations will be held at the Museum throughout the day. Activities include:
Children's Bike & Wagon Parade -- Come early to decorate your bike, wagon, or stroller with patriotic colors. Decorate from 12:00 - 2:00. The parade begins at 2:30. March & Wave.
The 1940s Candy Counter -- Taste history. Visit the 1940s Abbott neighborhood store and purchase your own period candy. While you're there, learn about WWII rationing - and understand why your grandmother never throws anything away.
Traditional Games -- Come one, come all! Join the competitions for patriotic prizes. Our costumed junior role players love to teach modern kids to play the games of old.
Dr. Jackson's Surgery -- Meet Dr. Hall Jackson, prominent physician of Portsmouth in the late 18th century. Learn about medical practice of the period. Visit with Mrs. Jackson and try your hand at spinning.
Blue Ocean Society Touch Tank -- Check out: Hermit crabs, Sea stars, Blue mussels, Periwin- kles, Dogwinkles, Sea anemones, Green crabs, Barnacles & more.
Kids Liberty Treasure Hunt -- Explore the Museum while on a treasure hunt. Prizes awarded to all those who complete the hunt.
Kites Over the Piscataqua -- Giant kites, stunt kites and kid's kites. Glenn Davison and members of the Kites Over New England Kite Club demonstrate their amazing flying skills on Puddle Dock. Come watch, come try, come fly,
Other activities include -- garden history tours; open hearth cooking demonstrations; weaving and spinning demonstrations; musket firings; traditional barrel making demonstrations with cooper Ron Raiselis; 18th century Windsor chair making, hand-thrown stoneware pottery demonstrations; Painting Portsmouth art exhibit, and much more.
Visitors are encouraged to bring blankets and chairs and settle in for a relaxing day of good old-fashioned family fun. Adults pay $15, and kids as well as active members of the military and their families come for free.
About Strawbery Banke Museum
Connect with the Past! Step into 400 years of living in the Puddle Dock neighborhood. Strawbery Banke provides the opportunity to see how people lived for four centuries of New England history. Through restored furnished houses, exhibits, historic landscapes and gardens, and costumed role players, Strawbery Banke interprets the living history of generations who settled in Portsmouth, NH, from the late 17th century to the mid-20th century.
Strawbery Banke Museum in Portsmouth, NH, is open May 1 through October 31, 10 to 5 daily. Call 603-433-1100 for more information on admission.
