The Liberty and Union Festival is Saturday, October 17th from 11:30 - 4 pm on Church Green in Downtown Taunton. This free, all-ages event features reenactors, music, dance, farm animals and more! Updates to this page will be added as events are finalized. Stay tuned!
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Ongoing Activities (12 pm - 4 pm)
The Colonial Village & Market
Interact with artisans and interpreters depicting life in Taunton at the time of the American Revolution. Visit a market set up like a Colonial market place and explore quills & ink. Shop a variety of vendors featuring items both Colonial & modern. The Pumpkin Patch
Kids are invited to decorate a free Patriotic Pumpkin to take home! Our littlest Revolutionaries can also enjoy colonial games, try their hand at pumpkin bowling, & create a masterpiece with sidewalk chalk. The Picnic Grove
A variety of vendors & food trucks will be offering food for sale including Grove Street Tavern, Gonzalez Food Truck, Fork & Bibb, and Trucchi's. Public restrooms are open inside the Museum as well as in the form of a port a potty on the Festival grounds. A limited number of tables & chairs will be available for eating. The Museum
Admission to the Old Colony History Museum is free all day in honor of the Liberty and Union Festival! The Farm Yard
The kids will enjoy visiting with alpaca's in our farm yard. Guided Tours of First Parish Church 12 - 4 pm
The site of Taunton's first church and meetinghouse back in 1697, the current First Parish Church is the 4th church on this historic site. In 1671 it was here that a peace treaty was signed between colonists and King Philip (and later broken in 1675). Learn more about this amazing building and property such as about the architecture, the bell, and the gorgeous stained glass windows made by a famous maker! This is a tour every Tauntonian should take! Tours are free of charge. Mobile Forge & Blacksmith 12 - 4 pm
Dick Renker, blacksmith, will be presenting demonstrations at his mobile forge all day at Liberty & Union. Stroll over to experience this age old craft up close. 
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Special Events
Liberty and Union Trail Walking Tour
11 am starting at The Museum. Wreath Laying at the Robert Treat Paine Statue & Liberty and Union Flag Raising
11:30 am at The Robert Treat Paine Statue, group procession to Liberty Pole at OCHM. Featuring the THS JROTC, SAR, William Diamond Junior Fife and Drum, Rehoboth Minutemen, Taunton Boy Scouts, Taunton Girl Scouts, and more. Dance History Alive Presentation 12- 4 pm
Dancing was seen in colonial America as both a necessary accomplishment and an enjoyable activity. As a French visitor to Philadelphia put it around 1795, “All American girls or women are fond of dancing, which is one of their greatest pleasures. Join Jacob and Nancy Bloom as they demonstrate and teach some dances Colonial-style! Pied Potter Hamelin 12 - 4 pm
Master Potter Rick Hamelin will provide a demonstration of historical pottery making techniques and forms with a discussion of the Potter's trade in Massachusetts from the 17th -19th centuries. Liberty Tavern Stage & Beer Tent 12 - 4 pm
On the eve of the raising of the Liberty & Union Flag by a group of Tauntonians, the patriots enjoyed some local brews in a nearby tavern. In keeping with that spirit, we have created the Liberty Tavern & Beer Tent! Stop by the beer tent to enjoy some seasonal beer & wine! Admission to the beer tent is limited to patriots aged 21 and over, but all ages are welcome in the Tavern Stage area. A variety of acts will be featured on the Tavern Stage including music by Mike Kelleher & Friends, The Taunton City Band, the Bristol County Fife & Drum Corps, and local dance studios. Patriotic Pet Parade & Optional Collection for Taunton Animal Care Facility 2:45 pm
Dress up your pooch in Patriotic attire for this fun and adorable Parade featuring our four footed friends! Please register your pet for the Parade & contest at the Downtown Taunton Foundation table, located near the stage area. All pets must be on a leash. We ask owners to use good judgement and only bring along pets who are crowd friendly. Awards will be given. Judging will take place during the parade. Taunton Girl Scout volunteers will be judging the Parade and collecting items for the Taunton Animal Care Facility's Wish List. |
