Living History Day is the culmination of a year-long project between Heuvelton Central School and Ogdensburg City Schools. Over 300 fourth and seventh-grade students from both schools were involved in the project. Students studied the French and Indian War throughout the year and completed projects with a focus on the role Fort de la Présentation played in this conflict.
The eighth annual Living History Day took place on May 19th at Lockwood Arena in Ogdensburg. Eighteenth-century re-enactors and heritage interpreters demonstrated open-hearth cooking, colonial toys, colonial lighting, tin smithing, cartridge rolling, and other traditional activities.
Throughout the day, students saw, touched and tasted some of what was everyday life for their ancestors. They experienced the life and color of America’s history that happened in their own backyard.
Support, financial and material, was donated by the Heuvelton Teacher’s Association and the Ogdensburg Education Association. St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES coordinated a School/Curriculum Improvement Program, allowing the three participating schools to split the cost of the presenters and admission fees.
The students really enjoyed their learning experience. Here is what some of them said in thank-you notes:
“Thank you very much for coming to show us different items from our history. I thought the whole Living History Day was really fun and informal. I also appreciate you taking time out of your day to come at help teach us stuff that people did back then. I thought everyone did a very good job teaching us. I had a very fun time learning.”
“At first I thought it would be really boring, but after I got there it was very interesting. I love when they showed us the clothing they would have worn back then.”
“Another one I liked was the hands-on toys; they were fun to play with and taught us how games were back in the day, how they used bones and corn husks because they didn’t waste anything.”
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