History will come to life this weekend at Sycamore Shoals State Historic Park during the Winter Militia Muster at Fort Watauga.
The special event will take place on Saturday, Feb. 4, and Sunday, Feb. 5, at the State Park.
Park Ranger Jason Davis describes the muster as a “living history” event where reenactors with the Washington County Militia will bring to life a variety of colonial-era characters including hunters, farmers, and backcountry gentry.
“They will be portraying what life was like on the frontier,” Davis said.
The militia members will be set up in and around the Fort providing a wide variety of educational and entertaining opportunities.
“Each of the cabins will be open for visitors to come in and interact with the reenactors,” Davis said. “There will be demonstrations of some of the traditional colonial and frontier skills.”
Among the skills militia members will demonstrate are open hearth cooking and black powder weapons demonstrations. A full line-up of weekend events is not finalized with a schedule yet, but Davis said one should be complete by the early part of the coming week.
The Winter Militia Muster will take place from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 4, and then again from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 5.
Because the event takes place outdoors, it is subject to cancellation if the area is hit by severe weather.
In early January the Park had to cancel the Old Christmas Celebration at the park due to a heavy snowfall paired with temperatures that dropped into the teens.
“Hopefully we will have better weather this go around,” Davis said.
For more information about the Winter Militia Muster at Fort Watauga, contact Sycamore Shoals State Historic Park at 423-543-5808.