Independence Day sets the stage for July’s First Saturday

    Independence Day, July 4, also happens to coincide with First Saturday for the month of July, so there’s a number of special activities planned.

    The First State Heritage Park will celebrate the Fourth with free activities throughout the day:

    Historic Dover Scavenger Hunt; 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., which begins at the Delaware Vistors Center and Galleries, 406 Federal St. Participants will find clues hidden throughout Dover’s historic sites and museums. Small prizes will be given to those who uncover all the secrets of Delaware history.

    Colonial Kids Games and Activities on The Green and Voices from Dover’s Past; Storytelling on The Green, 11 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 4 p.m. Historical interpreters portray real people who lived in Dover during the Revolution under a shade tree on The Green. They will share tales of local troublemakers, Loyalist rebellions and of the earliest Fourth of July celebrations in Dover.

    Come Scream For Your Team! 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Johnson Victrola Museum. The popular 1920s song “I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Ice Cream” got its start as an early American fight song. Visitors will hear songs by the Waring’s Pennsylvanians and rare collegiate songs. Kids will make colorful, musical pendants.

    Dover’s Heroes of the Revolution Walking Tour; noon and 4:30 p.m., Christ Church. The tour features a stroll through the monuments of Christ Church to those of the Old Presbyterian Churchyard, with visits to the graves and former residences of Dover’s Revolutionary heroes. Visitors will hear their stories and remember their sacrifices.

    Biggs Kids; Stars and Stripes, 2 p.m., Biggs Museum of American Art. Children will celebrate America’s birthday by creating flags to wave on the Fourth of July.

    Let Freedom Ring; The Declaration of Independence, Old State House, 2 p.m. Beginning at the Old State House, bells throughout Dover will ring to honor the men and women who founded the nation. This will be followed by a dramatic reading of the Declaration of Independence by costumed historical interpreters at the location where it was first read to the citizens of Dover in 1776.

    Caesar Rodney Rides Again! 2:30 p.m., Delaware Public Archives. Dick Pack portrays Caesar Rodney in this living history tribute to Delaware’s hero of the American Revolution.

    In addition to the above, all Heritage Park museums and exhibits will be open from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.:

    Guided Tours of Legislative Hall, Delaware’s State Capitol building, the seat of Delaware’s General Assembly since 1933.

    Guided tours through the recently restored Old State House on The Green.

    Delaware Visitor Center and Galleries, 406 Federal St., Special Exhibit: Shipbuilding in the First State.

    Delaware Public Archives, 121 Duke of York St., Special Exhibit: Abraham Lincoln: A Bicentennial Celebration. On view in the Jewel Box: One of three copies of the 13th Amendment signed by President Lincoln.

    Biggs Museum of American Art, 406 Federal St., Special Exhibit: Award winners feature the talent of the current Individual Artist Fellows of the Delaware Division of the Arts.

    Johnson Victrola Museum, 375 S. New St., On Exhibit: Sound recording industry items dating from the 1890s through 1929.

    The First State Heritage Park at Dover is a partnership of state agencies, under the leadership of Delaware State Parks, working in collaboration with city and county government, nonprofit organizations and the private sector to create Delaware’s first urban “park without boundaries” linking historic and cultural sites in the city that has been the seat of state government since 1777.

    For more information, call 739-9194 or visit www.destateparks.com/heritagepark.