Founders' Day celebrates 19th century
April 28, 2011
O’Fallon, MO
Have you ever milked a cow, washed clothes by hand, seen raw wool spun into thread, or started a fire with flint and steel?
These are just a few of the activities and demonstrations that kids and adults can watch and even try their hand at, free, during O’Fallon’s 4th Annual Founders’ Day in Fort Zumwalt Park. O’Fallon Founders’ Day will be held on Saturday, May 7, from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Admission and parking are free, and festival food and beverages will be available for purchase.
“This event is educational as well as enjoyable, especially for families,” said Marsha Seymour, O’Fallon’s Manager of Tourism and Festivals. “We’ve got several new activities – cow milking with a simulator, old time photos, bee keeping and wool spinning. And we’re bringing back two interactive shows that people really liked last year, Jim ‘Two Crows’ Wallen, and Madame Rosa’s Museum of Natural Oddities . Mr. Wallen is an award-winning storyteller. And Madame Rosa’s natural history shows are exciting, especially to kids.”
Music on the Main Stage will be performed by the Lodge Brothers duo, and by the Floyd & the Barbers, a bluegrass band. The Lodge Brothers will play acoustic bluegrass, traditional music, old-time and Celtic music. In the activities area, Pat McMenomy will play the hammer dulcimer and teach period dancing. “Everyone is welcome to try – it’s a lot of fun,” said McMenomy.
All-day activities include old-time games, free admission to the St. Charles Model Railroad Club train layout, historic Darius Heald Home tours at $2 per person, demonstrations of rope and broom-making, hand laundering clothes, soap carving, fire-starting and hand-quilting. An Arbor Day ceremony will begin at 10 a.m. with the planting of a fruitless sweet gum tree.
“ Volunteers are needed to help as greeters and to teach 19th Century games,” said Kathy Halstead, O’Fallon’s Manager of Volunteer Services. “It’s fun to learn a game and teach others how to play.”
To volunteer, contact O’Fallon’s Volunteer Services Department at volunteer@ofallon.mo.us, or call 636-379-5507. Visit www.ofallon.mo.us/Volunteer for additional opportunities and information.
For festival updates, visit www.ofallon.mo.us, or call 636-379-5614. For more information, contact Marsha Seymour at mseymour@ofallon.mo.us.
Directions: On I-70, take Exit 217 at Highways K / M (Main Street) in O’Fallon, drive south on Highway K for one block to the stoplight at Veterans Memorial Parkway; turn right (west) and then drive about one mile to the Fort Zumwalt Park entrance on the left (south).
From the City of O'Fallon, MO
Copyright 2011 Neighbors About Town
