Mark Your Calendar for the 7th Annual

Somerset County Weekend Journey Through the Past

October 13 & 14, 2012

Four New Sites Plus New Family Detective Game

Mark your fall calendar for Somerset County’s seventh annual Weekend Journey through the Past, a collaborative heritage tourism program showcasing 27 significant historic sites countywide that will be open to the public free of charge on Saturday, Oct. 13, from 10:00 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 14, from noon to 4 p.m. 

“There will be an impressive range of tours and activities to engage your interests, satisfy your curiosity and provide an enjoyable free weekend outing with your entire family,” said Freeholder Deputy Director Peter S. Palmer, liaison to the county Cultural & Heritage Commission, which hosts the annual event.

Through  the enthusiastic involvement, collaborative partnerships and support of Somerset County’s many historic societies and commissions, this annual event features many special activities, including a contest for prizes; interpreted tours led by costumed docents; special collections and exhibitions; period military drills and encampment with living-history re-enactors; open-hearth cooking; colonial tavern life; traditional blacksmithing; 19th-century firefighting wagons and apparatus and much more.

There also will be antiques sales; arts and crafts; a special U.S. Golf Association exhibition, “American Champions and Barrier Breakers: Contributions African-Americans Have Made to Golf for over a Century”;  live period music performances and participatory colonial dance instruction; a scheduled theatrical performance; guidance on genealogical resources; daily chores of 18th century life; military history; demonstrations; local history videos; antique cameras, music boxes and unique musical instrument collections; participatory activities; interesting architecture; access to some sites not generally open to the public.

New for 2012 is “What in the World is That?,” a detective investigation activitydesigned to be a shared educational and fun activity for kids and the entire family.

For comprehensive details, participating historic sites featured this year (including four new, first-time participating sites), information about how to qualify to win one of many pre-paid gasoline gift cards and advance information about the new “What in the World is That” kids/family detective investigation activity, visit www.SCHistoryWeekend.com

For more information, contact Cultural & Heritage Manager Pat McGarry at 908-231-7110.