Celebrate the maritime culture and history of the Jersey Cape at Historic Cold Spring Village on Saturday and Sunday, August 30, and 31. The Seafarers’ Weekend event will run from 10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. and will feature pirates, music, and a variety of demonstrations and performances of all things nautical. The Village buildings will also be open, featuring historical interpreters in period clothing who demonstrate the trades, crafts and lifestyles of Early America. “There is such a rich heritage related to the sea and land around and in Cape May County,” said HCSV Executive Director Anne Salvatore. “We are proud to be able to promote and celebrate that history at the Village.” Seafarers’ Weekend is a new addition to the Village’s schedule of events, and is generously sponsored by Utsch’s Marina and The Lobster House.
Guests will have the opportunity to interact with two groups of pirate re-enactors. Sea Rats Atlantic, a premiere history re-enactor group, will be demonstrating a typical day in the life of a pirate encampment. Presentations will include musket firing, battle demonstrations, and hands-on children’s activities such as sword drills and rope games. Valhalla’s Pirates will also join the event, performing fight scenes and selling pirate goods and related merchandise. Guests can enjoy refreshments from seafood vendors and a seafood buffet at the Old Grange Restaurant at noon on Saturday. The Old Grange will also be featuring their seafood buffet on Sunday evening. The Friends of Historic Cold Spring Village will be holding a traditional South Jersey corn roast at the Village Pavilion.
Other highlights include a visit from the United States Coast Guard, who will be landing a helicopter on the Village Farm and providing live demonstrations from experienced rescue swimmers (USCG presentations are tentative; subject to change). Skilled local and award winning duck decoy carvers will be presented both afternoons. Scrimshaw, the art of carving sentimental scenes into whale bone, will be demonstrated in the Woodwright Barn.
Masters of sea shanties and maritime folk music will be performing throughout the weekend at the Village Gazebo. On Saturday, Smithsonian-recorded folk singer and storyteller Jim Albertson will present “Down Jersey.” A program comprised of traditional songs and stories from the Jersey Shore and Pine Barrens, Albertson uses a variety of rare instruments in his performances including the dulcimer and tin whistle. Charlie Zahm will be the featured musical performance on Sunday. Zahm has an award-winning repertoire which includes traditional maritime folk music from various regions in the United States.
Historic Cold Spring Village is a non-profit Early American open-air living history museum located at 720 Route 9, three miles north of Victorian Cape May and four miles south of Rio Grande, exit 4A from the Garden State Parkway. Hours of operation are 10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. The Country Store, Bakery, Ice Cream Parlor, Dried Flower Shop and Old Grange Restaurant are open for business. Admission during the season is $8.00 for adults, $7.00 for seniors (62 and over) and $6.00 for children ages 3-12. Children under 3 are admitted free. For more information on employment, events, membership or volunteering, please call (609) 898-2300, ext. 10 or visit www.hcsv.org .
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