In honor of National Daniel Boone Day (June 7), the Southern Appalachian Historical Association is hosting a special event at its Hickory Ridge History Museum Saturday, June 5th.
Daniel Boone, the Town of Boone’s legendary namesake, was a folk hero in his own lifetime (1734-1820). He was also one of America’s first naturalists, cherishing the country he found as he blazed trails from North Carolina into the wilderness of Virginia and Kentucky. He founded one of the first settlements west of the Appalachians, served as a militia officer in the Revolutionary War, was kidnapped, then adopted, by a Native American tribe, served in the Virginia legislature, supported his family by hunting and surveying, ran a tavern, and fathered ten children with his wife Rebecca. While journeying through the region of present-day Boone, NC, Daniel stayed in a cabin at the foot of Rich Mountain, and members of his extended family eventually settled here.
Hickory Ridge History Museum welcomes Mary Bohlen, president of North Carolina Daniel Boone Heritage Trail for an educational presentation. She will be joined by Robert Crum, who can trace his roots back to Daniel Boone. Mary will also demonstrate open-hearth cooking in the museum’s historic 1785 cabin, while interpreters present a frontier-style tavern, depict of the life of a woodsman and demonstrate a black powder long-rifle.
Another special guest will be “Bo” Taylor, a member of the Cherokee Long Hair Clan and Cherokee historian. Having spent much time with the tribe elders, Bo is well acquainted with the traditions and stories of a Native culture that Daniel Boone often encountered. He performs and teaches Cherokee songs and dances across the country, reads and writes Cherokee, performs native dances at Native powwows across the country and helps with educational programs at the Museum of the Cherokee Indian.
The Southern Appalachian Historical Association is a nonprofit organization preserving the High Country’s cultural heritage from its early years of settlement in the late 18th century. Guides in period dress demonstrate frontier life and period artifacts in five historic cabins on the beautiful Hickory Ridge History Museum grounds adjacent to the Horn in the West amphitheater. This year’s annual Daniel Boone Day event will be held from 10 AM until 2 PM, June 5th 2021. Admission will be $8 for adults and $5 for children.
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