Category: <span>History Alive!</span>

History Alive!

Celebrate Hillsborough with History Alive 2025

Saturday, May 31, 2025, from 9:30 to 4:30
At Historic Hillsborough Center
27 East Washington Road, Hillsborough NH
Sponsored by the Hillsborough Historical Society

You are invited to a town-wide gathering, to participate in, display or support our great town and its fascinating past. 

Third and Sixth grade students from HDSD will visit the Center on Thursday and Friday mornings, 5/29 and 5/30, touring the historic homes, structures and locations  as well as participating in many fun and creative activities, including blacksmith demonstrations by Garry Kalajian, stenciling, music provided by Silentwoods Collective, a school demonstration, storytelling via art with Marek Bennett, farm animals, spoon whittling by Suzy Knicely, beekeeping and home arts by Beeskep Cottage and more.

On Saturday, the free event will feature all the above as well as art created by HDSD students, workshops conducted by Marek Bennett for all ages, special concerts by Silentwoods Collective, a reenactment of the hit play “Fire in the Belfrey”, storytelling, games, a scavenger hunt, raffle, an exciting early settler wilderness survival adventure conducted by Ron Morin of the New England Trappers Association, contests and more.  Many have already committed to participate with fun and informative tent displays (see below)

All are invited to

  • Pitch a pop-up and display your family history, historic home or structure, business or association/group, village, farm or other endeavor via photos, postcards, souvenirs, scrapbooks, mementos, antiques or other fascinating connections to the town
  • Tell your story about your family, business, church, volunteer activities, growing up in Hillsborough, restoring your home or business in group conversations occurring throughout the day in the historic Center Club
  • Create a poster or storyboard about any of the above at a workshop held at Fuller library, Friday afternoons in the month of April
  • Support the event financially or with a donation to be raffled off to lucky visitors to the event.
  • Volunteer now or during any of the three days to help organize and conduct the activities.

This event is a continuation of the great tradition, the Living History Event (LHE) begun in 2008 by a large group of volunteers which continued its successful run until 2018.  History Alive continued in 2019 and has managed the Jones Road mid-August reenactments as originally conceived, since that time.  Hillsborough Center continued as a site through 2022.  Kemp Park was added in 2024 for the 250th Anniversary Celebration.   Two years ago, HDSD approved a collaboration with History Alive to allow certain grades to participate in end of year field trips to enhance their understanding of local and US history.  In June 2024, Kemp Park was the site of this successful experiment and Hillsborough Center is featured this spring.

Information and updates about the event can be found on the historyalivenh.org website, as well as the History Alive NH Facebook page.  Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

Come learn about our town and neighborhoods at a fun-filled, educational and fascinating event.

See you there!

History Alive!

History Alive 2022 – Press release

Hillsboro’s annual History Alive Weekend will expand to three sites to celebrate the town’s 250th, on a theme of Travelling through 250 years.

In the historic village of Hillsborough Center, we will have a theme of Travelling through 250 years. There will be speakers on the Underground Railroads of NH, on the History of Roads of NH, and on Abenaki Technology of 13,000 years.  Rides will be given in a horse and carriage around the Center. Listen to musicians play/sing music of the past 250 years, from classical to folk to jazz. Learn how to build a stonewall, watch a blacksmith, make brooms, create stencils, weave, and spin. Many activities are geared just for children.

Enjoy the drama of Fire in the Belfry, (solving the mystery of why the town hall burned years ago? Take part in a cake walk, and finish on Sunday with a parade led by an antique bone shaker bicycle.

Next to one of the double stone arch bridges that are famous in our town.

The usual reenactment of four wars will take place, along with gold panning for kids.

This year there will be several new additions at this Jones Road site.

  In the large tent, we will have a silent auction that runs all of Saturday. (Hillsboro used to be known for its antique auctioneers.) The results of the silent auction will be announced at 5 PM that evening.

   Marek Bennett will lead a workshop on Comics and Cartoon form of illustrating history. He has written three comic books based on the diary of Colby Freeman of Henniker who served in the Civil War. Come enjoy making comics yourself.

   At 3:30 PM the first day of History Alive will end with a square dance called by Susan Hunt accompanied by two New Hampshire musicians. She is known for helping all ages enjoy dancing.

    There also will be new vendors/exhibits of Civil War quilts, and cooking demos of sutlers who accompanied the soldiers.

At the new Kemo Park Site, history will come alive by the Contoocook River that runs through our town. Abenaki artisans will demonstrate making birchbark canoes, baskets, and pottery, as well as the history of how they used the river. Also, they will share about the native plants they taught the early settlers to use for medicine, food, and dye. Railroad buffs will share their stories and photos of the railroads of NH, especially the unique features of Hillsboro’s line. Old timers will share stories of working at the woolen mills. You can volunteer to help play a vintage baseball game according to 1864 rules. Each day will start with Abenaki drumming.

 Check out the website at: www.historyalivenh.org for details.

A great event for all families and people of any age to end the summer.

History Alive!

History, Alive!

  • 05/29/201906/24/2019
  • by Glenn

The production known as the Living History Event (LHE), NH had a good run and finished its 10th and final year in 2018.

Fans of the event will be pleased to know that information about its successor, “History Alive!”. “ This new event will feature two of the primary focus areas from the former LHE, the Jones Road Encampment Reenactors and the Historic Hillsborough Center.“  Many hours of effort have gone into elaborating on the Hillsborough Center events, and can be found at HistoryAliveNH.org.

History Alive NH is an independently operated trade-name of the Hillsborough Historical Society.“  We share a common interest in our local heritage and wish them the very best!