From Friends of the Wilderness
What: Taming the Wilderness, an 18th Century living history event
Who: Friends of Wilderness Battlefield.
When: The event will be held rain or shine on Sunday, September 30th, 11:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.
Where: Ellwood Manor
Enjoy a full day as craftsmen, artisans and living historians demonstrate many aspects of life in the late 1700’s through the early 1800’s. Demonstrations will highlight the building trades, homemaking skills and general everyday expertise needed to settle and survive in the Wilderness.
Artisans will be present throughout the day, demonstrating skills of the time such as stone masonry, wood working and the hewing and shaping of logs for cabin construction. Domestic activities to be shown include spinning and weaving, the tanning of deer hides, open hearth cooking and long rifle hunting skills. The Germanna Foundation will have a display of their archaeological activities. Other living history re-enactors will depict inn and tavern life, portrayals of a period musician, an18th century surgeon and an itinerant sketch artist. Also, our wonderful blacksmith will be returning this year, and you won’t want to miss him!
In addition to the ongoing living history activities, several presentations and tours will be offered throughout the day. Long time FoWB member and amateur archaeologist Dale Brown will give a presentation at 12:30 P.M. about the origins and construction of Ellwood Manor. His talk will include information concerning the locations of several of the outbuildings such as the kitchen, diary, smokehouse and oven.
In addition to Mr. Brown’s talk, a special presentation regarding colonial era Tavern Life will be presented at 2:00 P.M. by FoWB Volunteers Milbrey Bartholow, Ruth Pavlik, and Kim Harmon. Come and relax while our “Tavern Wenches” explain how things in the more rural taverns were run!
For our walking enthusiasts, Friends of Wilderness Battlefield volunteers will conduct guided walking tours of the Wilderness Crossing Trail at 12:00 P.M. and 3:00 P.M. Sturdy shoes and bug spray are recommended for this 75 – minute program, and don’t forget to bring along a bottle of water.
A shorter 30 – minute walking tour of the grounds will also be offered at 11:00 A.M. and 4:00 P.M. Ellwood Manor will be open during the day from 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. and FoWB volunteers will be glad to visit with guests and answer any questions.
In addition to the Living History activities and walking tours, FoWB volunteers will be on hand to assist visitors with possible ancestral connections with the Battle of the Wilderness or Ellwood, in the Heritage Program tent on the grounds.
All programs are free and open to the public. Donations are always welcome and appreciated.
For more information, please visit the Friends of the Wilderness website.
