Stone's Trace Historical Society
Stone's Tavern & Stone's Trace Regulators
Stone’s Trace Historical Society Celebrates America’s 250th Anniversary - June 28th 1-5pm
Special Community Day with music, food, and family-friendly activities
The celebration will take place at the Stone’s Trace grounds June 28th from 1-5pm. All are welcome to participate in this free landmark event.
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The Stone’s Trace Historical Society is proud to announce a special celebration honoring the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America. This historic milestone will be marked with a series of events, educational programs, and community activities aimed at commemorating our nation’s rich heritage and inspiring future generations.
As the country reaches its semi quincentennial — 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence — Stone’s Trace Historical Society invites residents, families, and visitors to join in a meaningful tribute to the principles of freedom, unity, and civic pride that continue to define America.
Our nation’s 250th birthday is a once-in-a-lifetime moment. We are honored to host events that not only celebrate our history but also bring the community together to reflect on where we’ve been and where we’re going.
Highlights of the Celebration:
Historic Exhibits showcasing regional artifacts and stories from the Revolutionary era through present day
Living History Re-enactors (George and Martha Washington, William Henry Harrison, Abraham Lincoln, and Ulysses S. Grant) and demonstrations featuring period dress, crafts, and demonstrations
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We have tentative plans to be at Kosciusko County's 250th celebration on June 6th and 7th
Featured Presidents:
George Washington
Dan (General Washington) is the founder and director of The Breeds Hill Institute, an educational non-profit focused on teaching the history of American Liberty. But his career has a history all its own. Dan has worked in commercial film and theater in roles including writer, director and actor. "But," he likes to stress "only once did I do all three at the same time." In recent years Dan acted as historical consultant to Ian Kahn who plays George Washington on AMC’s "Turn"
Kelly Shippey (Martha Washington) lives in the 18th century..."At least it feels that way" she says. Sharing Dan's passion for the history of the Revolution and early Republic has led her on some fairly wild journeys. Most recently she could be found exploring 18th century foodways and poking through a 240 year old plantation basement.
William Henry Harrison
Jeffery Patrick grew up in Ligonier and participated in the Pioneer Festival for many years as a Civil War reenactor. More recently, he has been potraying our 9th President, William Henry Harrison.
The election of 1840 that put William Henry Harrison in the White House has been described as the first “modern” American presidential election, and it would have been an important event in Noble County.
Patrick had the proper clothing made, and had a local woodworker make a replica table-top log cabin (since the Whigs promoted Harrison as the “Log Cabin” candidate). He also made copies of period images of Harrison and an election banner, copied a Harrison political token to give away, and made paper ballots so that visitors could practice “voting” for their candidate. He also did quite a bit of research into the election so that he could talk about the issues of the day, each party’s platform.
Abraham Lincoln
Murray Cox has been portraying Lincoln since 1985, appearing before elementary classrooms and college forums, Boy Scouts pageants and pilgrimages, Worship Services and Sunday School groups, community and patriotic groups, and even a wedding reception. He has been part of the documentaries about Lincoln presenters “Men in Hats”, and “Life as Lincoln.” Murray tries to inform people of parts of Lincoln’s life which are not widely known, or which may be misunderstood. His goal is for the listener to have a better understanding of the real Abraham Lincoln and his life. He has also been involved in two different documentaries about Abraham Lincoln presenters. He has spoken on topics such as Lincoln's youth in frontier Indiana, his career as a lawyer in Illinois, as the role of God in the Nation's Life.
Ulysses S. Grant
Larry Werline wants people to see the true man, not the myths, when he performs as a living history first-person presenter of Ulysses S. Grant.
The 18th president of the United States, Grant led the Union Army to victory over the Confederacy during the American Civil War. But for all his accomplishments, Grant has a legacy clouded by myths that Werline hopes to bust during the approximately 80 engagements he has per year.
“I, like most Americans, yeah, I thought Grant won the war and all, but he was a flawed character because that’s the way history portrays him,” said Werline, 72,
