Chestertown is known for its history, and at the June 19 meeting of the town council, residents outlined plans for three observances of that rich history.
Coming up this weekend is an observance of the 100th anniversary of the installation of the Civil War monument in the town’s Monument Park. Ceremonies featuring re-enactors and two bands will include a wreath-laying at the monument at 10:15 Saturday, Thomas Hayman told the council.
The Fort Delaware Cornet Band will play music of the Civil War era at around 2 p.m., and re-enactors will perform drills and show how Union and Confederate soldiers lived in camp and on campaign. Hayman said there will be no firing of weapons, and the demonstrations will be confined to the park area. Except for a brief period for the participants to march in, from lower on High Street, there will be no interruption of traffic, he said.
The monument itself bears the names of Kent County troops from the Union army on its north side and those of Confederate troops on its south side. It was donated in 1917 by Judge James Alfred Pearce, who both designed and paid for the granite monument.
Nearby is a more recent monument commemorating the more than 400 Kent County residents who served with the U.S. Colored Troops during the Civil War.
At the same meeting, Airlee Johnson of the Kent County Historical Society requested permits for street closures for Legacy Day, August 19. The event, which includes a parade, a concert in Fountain Park, and a genealogy workshop at Kent County Public Library, recognizes the history of the whole community, Johnson said. In its fourth year, the festival has drawn a large and diverse crowd to town.
This year’s festival honors the teachers in Kent County’s black schools during the segregation era. The teachers will be recognized at a reception at Sumner Hall Friday, August 18, and will ride in the parade. The Legacy Day has contacted as many teachers as its researchers could locate, and many of them will be returning from out of town to take part in the ceremonies.
The concert, Saturday night, featuring danceable music of the Motown era, is in cooperation with Chestertown’s Music in the Park program. For the concert, High Street between Cross and Spring streets will be closed off, and parking will be closed on all four sides of the park. There will be food vendors and several nonprofits will also have booths open to distribute information.
Also at the council meeting, Tess Hogans of the Garfield Center asked the council for a letter of support for an event at the theater Friday, Nov. 10, a continuation of the “Stories in Service” program the theater launched along with its production of “Mister Roberts.” The program consisted of interviews and photos of local service men and women displayed in the theater lobby and on the Chestertown Spy. The program got a much greater response than expected, Hogans said, so to accommodate those who couldn’t be included the first time, the theater will post all the pictures in the lobby in November in time for Veterans Day.
Hogans said she was working to get a Marine Corps color guard and a military band – possibly from the U.S. Navy to add to the recognition of the local veterans. She said one of the questions she needed to answer in the application for a military band was whether the program had the support of the local government. The council voted to send a letter of support.
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