BURRILLVILLE – A day long celebration of the history and heritage of the region and its contribution to the American story will take place next month, with community groups, vendors, reenactors, food trucks, fireworks, live entertainment and more on the grounds of Burrillville Middle School.
Burrillville Heritage Day will take place on Saturday, May 2, with festivities kicking off at 9 a.m. to continue well into the evening, thanks to planning by the Burrillville 250 Commission.
The event brings together two other festivals that typically place in town each spring, with vendors from the Green Festival and Family Fair to join the lineup from 10 to 1 p.m. There will be informational booths, giveaways, games and activities, and plenty food and shopping, with many vendors and local organizations to occupy the grounds of the Broncos Highway school through 4 p.m. Businesses signed on to participate include local restaurants, and companies such as town-based Charcuterie Artisans, offering samples of their fine meats.
Burrillville 250 Commission Chairman Chris Toti noted a focal point of the daytime activities will be a living history tent, featuring displays by the Burrillville Historical & Preservation Society from their Pascoag museum. The American Legion will offer information on soldiers killed in action in the central tent, and the State Archives will be on site with replicas of Rhode Island’s founding documents from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
“It will be a hands-on exhibit,” Toti explained.
There will also be several groups of reenactors taking part – both Colonial and British – with musket firing, and the Pawtucket Rangers shooting cannons. The reenactment groups will have a campfire setup and offer activities for kids, with both the Gloucester Light Infantry and the Tews Rangers representing the colonies in a skirmish.
“We hope the guys in red lose, but we’ll see,” said Toti.
The festival grounds will also host a touch-a-truck display with fire and military vehicles.
And even after the last of the vendors packs up around 4 p.m., other elements of the celebration will just be getting started.
Food trucks including Diniolicious, Little Bee’s BBQ, Mum’s Donuts, Not Your Average Popcorn and La Carreta will arrive, kicking off a program featuring remarks by local dignitaries and music by local students.
At 4:30 p.m., the live entertainment begins, and Toti said music through 7:30 p.m. will include performances by solo artist Ray Nault and The Live Music Band, with an additional act still to be determined.
Burrillville’s Heritage Day celebration will end with a massive fireworks display at dusk with Ocean State Pyrotecnics.
It is just one town’s part of the nationwide effort to celebrate America’s 250th birthday, organized in a way that puts emphasis on Rhode Island’s role.
“We’re having it in May because Rhode Island was the first colony to declare its independence from Britain,” Toti explained. “Rhode Island’s independence really began on May 4 ,1776. We wanted to use that as our day of celebration in Burrillville.”
The chairman said that Burrillville’s main event in the 250 festivities aims to offer both fun and education, reminding locals of the important history.
“Our goal was to have a community event that brought together different groups to celebrate the 250 years, and to give townspeople an understanding of the history – including our unique Rhode Island history,” Toti said.
“Freedom is a precious gift that we have to continue to cultivate if it’s going to survive the ages,” he said. “There were a lot of sacrifices that would made by folks during the American Revolution. We shouldn’t forget that..”
Heritage Day will take place on the grounds of Burrillville Middle School at 2220 Broncos Highway from 9 a.m. until after dusk on Saturday, May 2.
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