By Emma Ralls | eralls@saratogian.com

This year’s event will take place Saturday, Oct. 10, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday, Oct. 11, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Fort Hardy Park in Schuylerville, offering two days of living history, demonstrations, exhibits, and family activities, free and open to all. 

“What makes the siege weekend so special isn’t simply the history that we’re remembering; it’s the opportunity to share the history with people in a way that is meaningful, engaging, and accessible,” Mayor of Schuylerville Dan Carpenter said on Friday.

“Not everyone gets the opportunity to visit a museum or to travel to a historic destination or to learn about our nation’s past through a traditional classroom. Events like this bring history directly to the community, and by keeping these experiences pretty open to the public, we’re hoping to ensure that the cost is not a barrier to participate.”

Festivities include British and American encampments, cannon demonstrations, wagon rides, Revolutionary-era games and activities, blacksmithing demonstrations, historic sewing and mending, period music and opportunities to learn about daily life during the Revolution.

Visitors can also explore original and replica books and documents, learn about 18th-century printing and bookbinding, discover the role of midwives and nurses during the Revolution, and learn how food was preserved and prepared in the 1770s. Additional programs include historical lectures and presentations covering the Battles of Saratoga, the Continental Army, British soldiers, the evolution of Saratoga’s Trails and other aspects of the Revolutionary War.

The weekend also provides an opportunity to preview the new Battles of Saratoga in Motion exhibit at the Saratoga Revolutionary Experience Center, and participate in Saratoga250 activities, including the Siege Weekend Passport.

“Almost 250 years ago, patriots fought and died right here in Saratoga County for the idea and the ideals of self-governance and freedom. That idea has grown and flourished for 250 years as we became the greatest country in the world, the United States of America,” Chairman of the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors Phil Barrett said at the event on Friday.

“It is a humbling time for all of us to think about the turning point of the revolution that occurred right here in Saratoga County. Our freedom was fought for and won here in Saratoga County – and when we started this effort a few years ago, it started with a logo, and it has grown exponentially with many events each year leading up to what we expect to be an international tourism event coming up in 2027.”

Friday also served as the chance to officially begin the countdown to the expanded Saratoga Siege Festival in 2027, which will celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Saratoga – which will build on the festivities of the annual siege weekend and create an even larger event to celebrate the role Saratoga played in the country’s revolutionary history.

“The 250th anniversary allows Saratoga County to strengthen its heritage economy by connecting history already here with the communities, businesses, museums, trails, and historic sites that surround it,” Vice Chair of the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors and 250th Commission member Ian Murray said. “That is the larger purpose of the 250th Commemoration. We are not simply recreating something that happened 250 years ago; we are using history to help build the future. A national story and a local place, there is something especially powerful about holding this event here in the town of Saratoga.”

“The people who lived here in 1777 did not know they were standing at a turning point of world history. They were simply living through extraordinarily difficult times. 250 years later, we have the privilege of returning to that landscape with a better understanding of those choices and what those choices meant. That is the value of the commemoration. It allows us to look backward without leaving the present.”

Saratoga County Historian Lauren Roberts acknowledged that when the 250th Commission was formed five years ago, 2027 seemed pretty far away. However, it has gone by quickly, and with all the ceremonies and fireworks displays across the nation as the country honored the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, she notes that ‘here in Saratoga, we like to say that the Declaration was just the beginning.’