Colonial Living History Day at the Salem Museum

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Fincastle Company

Fincastle Company Living Historians

On September 2, from 10 am to 4 pm, the Salem Museum will take visitors back to the Colonial era in Southwest Virginia with a full day of living history. Costumed interpreters bring hands-on objects and share stories from our region’s past to bring history to life. The event is free and fun for all ages, especially families and children.

Colonial living historians from the Fincastle Company will demonstrate the professions, trades and crafts that were essential in the era, and tell stories about the men and women who built a life on Virginia’s frontier and who are remembered for their heroic deeds.

The Fincastle Company is a group of dedicated living historians who portray both military and civilian roles during the time of the American War of Independence. They conduct extensive research into the clothing and equipment of the era in order to be as accurate to the period as possible. The group performs living history displays at various historical sites across the mid-Atlantic region. They specifically portray the Fincastle/Montgomery County Militia which was an actual unit from Southwestern Virginia that served in the American Revolution.

The Salem Museum also includes exhibits about two of the area’s Colonial heroes, Colonel William Fleming and General Andrew Lewis. Fleming’s battle sword from the French and Indian War is featured. Fleming was a noted physician and statesman. Lewis is remembered for leading his troops to victory in the French and Indian War and Dunmore’s War. He also drove Lord Dunmore—the last British Governor—out of Virginia just days after the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

The Salem Museum & Historical Society is an independent, nonprofit organization preserving and celebrating the history of Salem, Virginia, which was founded in 1802. The Salem Museum is located in the historic 1845 Williams-Brown House at 801 East Main Street, Salem, VA 24153. Open Tuesday–Saturday, 10 am to 4 pm. Museum admission is free, but donations are appreciated. The Museum has free parking. 540-389-6760. salemmuseum.org