‘Declaring Independence’ Program by Freedom’s Way NHA Wins Prestigious Award

‘Declaring Independence: Then & Now’ is an award-winning program that explores the meaning of the Declaration of Independence to those who debated it in 1776 and to us today.

Freedom’s Way NHA / P. Lacroix

Devens, MA (July 3, 2019) – Just in time for this year’s July 4th celebrations, Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area received a national award for its annual program Declaring Independence: Then & Now. The American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) recently announced the 2019 recipients of the Award of Excellence, the nation’s most prestigious recognition of achievement in the preservation and interpretation of state and local history.

As part of the program, living history performers portray American colonists as they debate independence in 1776.

Freedom’s Way NHA / D. Demski-Hamelin

Declaring Independence: Then & Now is a public performance depicting how residents of communities in Massachusetts and New Hampshire debated the idea of declaring independence from Great Britain in 1776. The thought-provoking piece explores what the Declaration of Independence meant to those who lived during the American Revolution and what it means to people today.

The program is held several times each year around July 4th in historic venues across Freedom’s Way NHA. Each performance is uniquely tailored to the community in which it occurs, using a script written by citizen-historians and performed by living history actors. Performances are followed by an open conversation with the audience, with the intention of encouraging and deepening civic engagement. Freedom’s Way NHA offers the program in collaboration with the American Antiquarian Society and community partners, with additional support from the Massachusetts Society of the Cincinnati.

The Executive Director of Freedom’s Way NHA, Patrice Todisco, explains, “Declaring Independence: Then & Now is a collaborative endeavor and we are grateful to our many partners who have made the program a success. These include the citizen-historians who research primary source documents and the reenactors and narrators who bring that research to life.”

Each year, AALSH bestows 50 Awards of Excellence on people, programs, exhibits, and publications that represent outstanding work in the fields of state and local history. This year, two National Heritage Areas were among the recipients. Read about the other recipient, Niagara Falls National Heritage Area and their award-winning exhibit One More River to Cross at the Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center.

‘Declaring Independence’ performers at the 2019 program in Concord, MA.

Freedom’s Way NHA / D. Demski-Hamelin

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