Celebrate Westport's Iconic Minute Man Monument

Celebrate Westport’s iconic, 105-year-old Minute Man Monument with a variety of special events in difference locations around Westport on Sunday, April 26, from noon to 5 pm, following the annual Minute Man Race. The newly restored statue represents a Revolutionary War minute man, muzzleloader in hand and eyes peeled for British troops returning from the Battle of Danbury. Community partners for the program are the Westport Historical Society, Westport Arts Advisory and the Connecticut Society of the Sons of the American Revolution. The following events are open to the public and all are invited:

Noon-1:45 pm: Meet Westport Historical Society docents at the Ned Dimes Marina for a guided tour and talk on the history of the Minute Man, with a stop at the Revolutionary War cemetery and the Minute Man monument. Special children’s activities at the Marina. Tours depart every 15 minutes from 12-1:30 pm.  Open to the public, $10 suggested donation for Adults; Youth, 12 and under free (net proceeds will be donated to the ongoing care of the monument).

1-5 pm:  Visit a recreated Revolutionary militia encampment on Jesup Green next to the Westport Library and learn about the American Revolution from CT Society of the Sons of the American Revolution Color Guards who will perform musket demonstrations.  Free and open to the public.

2:30 pm: Learn how Francis Miller restored The Minute Man, H. Daniel Webster’s life-sized figure commissioned by the State of Connecticut and the Sons of the American Revolution in 1910, in the Library’s McManus Room with Town Curator Kathie Bennewitz and Westport Arts Advisory. Free and open to the public.

3:00 pm: History lecturer Ed Hynes will present an interpretation of the Danbury Raid in the Library’s McManus Room. Hynes first became interested in the raid as a child when he learned his neighbor’s house was partially burned by the British during the raid. On April 25, 1777, Tryon’s forces landed on what is now Westport’s Compo Beach. As the British marched to Danbury the Patriots mustered their forces under the command of Major Gen. David Wooster and Brigadier Generals Benedict Arnold and Gold Selleck Silliman. What happens next to the British on their four-day raid and to the Patriots in their attempt to deny them safe return to their ships is a white-knuckle story of the men fighting for their lives and their countries. Free and open to the public.

For further information, phone 203-291-4800, or check westportlibrary.org.

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Submitted by Westport, CT

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