July 4th - Independence Day at Monticello

One of the most touching ceremonies I've ever seen is Independence Day at Monticello, during which immigrants are sworn in as new citizens of the United States. It starts at 9 am on July 4th this year, and is free. So before your cookout and your fireworks, take a couple of hours and visit Monticello, the home of the man who helped start it all.

For more information, go to Independence Day at Monticello

June 23, 2010 - Batteau Night In Scottsville, VA

The 25th Annual Batteau Festival runs from June 19 through 26, 2010. Boats begin arriving in Scottsville in mid-afternoon on Wednesday the 23rd and tie up at Scottsville's Ferry Street public boat landing. The public is welcome to come see the boats and their crews, who wear authentic costumes.

Scottsville Museum will be open on the 23rd from 1-8 pm.

For the history buffs among us, a batteau is a type of flat-bottomed boat invented here in Central Virginia by farmer Anthony Rucker (and named by Thomas Jefferson). The boats were flat-bottomed so they could navigate the Rivanna and James Rivers, which were shallow at certain times of the year. A batteau could normally carry about eleven hogsheads (a barrel that could contain about a thousand pounds of tobacco) to Richmond for sale.

The Batteau Festival begins each year at Lynchburg and ends at Richmond.

For more information on the Batteau Festival, see the website: http://www.batteau.org/

Free Museum Day, Sept. 25, 2010

Last year, the Smithsonian sponsored “Free Museum Day”; I used my pass to see the Old Stone Jail Museum in Palmyra, VA.

This year’s Free Museum Day will be on Sept. 25th -- starting July 1st, you can choose the museum you want to see, and print out the free passes at this site:

http://microsite.smithsonianmag.com/museumday/index.html

Enjoy!