FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 19, 2007

CONTACT: Sebastian D’Elia, 908-527-4419
Tom Plante, 908-527-4746

Photos Available

Time Travelers Alert: See Union County History Come Alive
at “Four Centuries in a Weekend,” Oct. 20-21

Here’s your chance to travel back in time – at “Four Centuries in a Weekend, 2007.”

The annual heritage festival, sponsored by the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders, takes visitors on a journey through Union County’s history. The two-day free festival is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 20th from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 21st from 12 noon to 5:00 p.m. Guide booklets and maps of the sites are now available, yours for the asking.

This year’s festival is part of the celebration of Union County’s 150th anniversary and will feature lively musical performances and re-enactors in historical costumes. Don’t miss the Civil War re-enactors of the 6th Regiment U.S. Colored Troops at Evergreen Cemetery in Hillside. You will learn the little-known story of the African-Americans who fought in the Civil War. See actors portray Sojourner Truth at the Drake House in Plainfield, and Eleanor Roosevelt at Twin Maples in Summit. Meet a soldier from the Mexican-American War at Boxwood Hall in Elizabeth. Taste colonial recipes at the Miller-Cory House in Westfield, and watch the “Jersey Blues,” soldiers from the Revolutionary War, drill at Springfield’s Cannon Ball House.

Hear singers, storytellers, and/or musicians at sites in Clark, Cranford, Kenilworth, Mountainside, New Providence, Rahway, Roselle, Roselle Park, Scotch Plains, Summit, and Union. Volunteers in period costumes will show you the best of every location. Stroll through the gardens of Reeves-Reed Arboretum in Summit, or Liberty Hall in Union, where our state’s first governor lived. At the Deserted Village in the Watchung Reservation, follow “David Felt” through the town he founded in 1845. You might even be surprised by a ghost at Kenilworth’s Nitschke House.

Check the free booklet for details about each site. It features photos and information about the 25 participating heritage sites, their historic significance, and a list of all the special activities on the weekend of Oct. 20-21. Note for teachers: the booklet groups the sites into five thematic clusters that reflect the four centuries of Union County history. Materials for students are available. Please contact the Union County Office of Cultural & Heritage Affairs for more information.
 
“Four Centuries in a Weekend” is a public history event made possible by the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders and funded in part by the New Jersey Historical Commission, a division of the New Jersey Department of State.

To obtain a free copy of the guide booklet and map, contact

the Union County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs,
633 Pearl Street, Elizabeth NJ 07202.
Telephone 908-558-2550
between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
NJ Relay Users dial 711. Or E-mail: culturalinfo@ucnj.org.