Date: Sun Jul 4, 2010
Time: Noon-4 pm
Pack a picnic, bring your lawn chairs and your blankets, and enjoy the Independence Day holiday weekend by attending this annual patriotic celebration on Sunday, July 4. The North Carolina State Capitol will sponsor this fun-filled family event that has become a downtown Raleigh tradition.
From noon to 4 p.m. the event will offer the public a variety of musical performances, historical and military displays, a craft demonstration, and several hands-on and play activities for children to enjoy. Visitors will have the chance to listen to a variety of music inside of the Capitol and outside on the square from groups such as the Raleigh Concert Band, the Moonlighters Orchestra, and the Starcatchers vocal ensemble. Visitors can depart from the festivities on the square to take a narrated trolley ride throughout the historic downtown are to view Raleigh’s landmarks.
Reenactors will represent American military might from the Revolutionary period to the Vietnam era. Also, the Capitol will once again sponsor the popular “Old Fashioned 4th” historical demonstration area to examine how Americans celebrated Independence Day long ago.
At 12:30, an outdoor naturalization ceremony for new citizens will take place on the Capitol steps. Immediately following the ceremony, the traditional “Salute to Independence” will feature a reading of Thomas Jefferson’s most noble achievement, “The Declaration of Independence.” This will be followed by the placement of floral tributes to mark the 1775-1781 War for Independence and the successive wars that have preserved America’s freedoms and have continued to spread America’s democracy and freedoms globally. Food vendors, including Jonesy’s Concessions and Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, will be located on the Capitol grounds. The History Museum gift shop will be open from noon - 4 p.m. and the museum’s restrooms also will be available to all attendees.
A National Historic Landmark, the N.C. State Capitol is one of the finest and best-preserved examples of the Greek Revival style of architecture in the U.S. It features a domed rotunda and state senate and house chambers, meticulously restored to their 1840 appearance. Until 1888, its granite walls housed all of state government and the legislature met here until 1961. Today, the governor and her staff still occupy offices in the Capitol.
The State Capitol’s mission is to preserve and interpret the architecture, history, and functions of the 1840 Capitol building and Union Square where it is located. In downtown Raleigh, the State Capitol is bounded by Edenton, Salisbury, Morgan and Wilmington Streets. Free parking is available in state lots near the Capitol. For more information on the State Capitol call 919-733-4994 or go to http://www.nchistoricsites.org/capitol.
A ministered by the Division of State Historic Sites, the State Capitol is part of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, a state agency dedicated to the promotion and protection of North Carolina’s arts, history and culture. Join the Cultural Resources 2009 theme observance of “Treasure N.C. Culture. For more information, visit www.ncculture.com.
Associated Street Closures:
The 00 block of Edenton Street, between Wilmington Street and Salisbury Street.
