This year marks the Bicentennial celebration of the Marquis de Lafayette’s Farewell Tour of the United States! Throughout his yearlong tour of all 24 states, Americans honored Lafayette with a parade and great fanfare at almost every stop he made. Local craftspeople also produced many types of commemorative memorabilia, such as the pictured drum, baby shoes, and ribbon, now in the Old Sturbridge Village Museum Collection. When Lafayette toured the state of Massachusetts, his final stop was in the Town of Sturbridge, where he was greeted by a martial band, the Town’s artillery company, and thousands of civilians.
Commemorative Ceremony on the Sturbridge Common
Join us on September 3, 2024, at 6:00 p.m. for a commemorative event on the Sturbridge common, the exact ground where Lafayette stopped. An actor portraying Lafayette will be greeted by costumed interpreters portraying veterans of the revolution, members of the Sturbridge Artillery, who will stand by with their cannon, and the musicians from the Uxbridge Grenadiers. There will be a triumphal arch, toasts by costumed interpreters from Old Sturbridge Village, fife and drum music, and an opportunity for the public to make their own commemorative Lafayette ribbon. Experience the closest thing to the actual events that took place in 1824 here in Sturbridge! This ceremony is FREE and open to the public!
The commemorative event is part of The American Friend of Lafayette’s 2024-2025 Bicentennial Tour, which will take place across the 24 states that Lafayette visited on his Farewell Tour. For more details about The American Friends of Lafayette and other Bicentennial Tour programming, please visit lafayette200.org.
