2026 Opening Day: Frontier Spring 1776
Venue: Historic Smithfield, Blacksburg
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 11:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Event Types: Music, Food, Miscellaneous, Family Friendly, Arts & Theatre, Speaking Engagements, Charity
Cost: Free
Description:
Historic Smithfield presents 2026 Opening Day titled "Frontier Spring 1776" on Saturday, April 11, 2026.

Step back in time and experience life on Virginia’s colonial frontier at Historic Smithfield’s 2026 season opener! Our “Frontier Spring in 1776” celebration invites the community to explore the daily life, work, and crafts of families living in Southwest Virginia during the Revolutionary era.

Live Music & Performance Schedule:
• 11:00 AM: Performance by Montgomery Junior Appalachian Musicians
• 12:00 PM: Living history presentation with William Preston (Michael Hudson) in conversation with Thomas Jefferson (Bryan Austin)
• 1:00 PM: Foot-stomping bluegrass by New Standard

Living History & Demonstrations:
• Hands-on crafts inspired by 1776 frontier life: candle dipping, seed planting, church dolls, and simple textile projects
• Blacksmith demonstrations showing traditional tool-making techniques
• Militia demonstrations illustrating colonial military drills and frontier defense
• Hand-made shingles demonstrations by the Matthews Living History Farm
• Make a piggy bank with the Friends of St. Luke, Odd Fellows, & Household of Ruth
• Guided tours of the historic house

Hear Western Virginia's leading voices from 1776 on the Revolution's turning points. Historic Smithfield presents a living history encounter featuring Governor Thomas Jefferson, statesman, philosopher, and Delegate to the Continental Congress, alongside Colonel William Preston, County Lieutenant of Montgomery and Commander of the Fincastle County Militia.

Jefferson will be portrayed by Bryan Austin, a living history interpreter at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, and Colonel Preston by Michael Hudson, Executive Director of Historic Smithfield.

Food will be available for purchase from Cousins Coffee, Co and Hot Bunz Hot Dogz.

There will also be a silent auction that closes at 2:30 PM.

Admission is free and all are welcome.

Historic Smithfield is located at 1000 Merry Oak Way in Blacksburg, VA.

To view the event flyer, visit: https://i.postimg.cc/5tdrhMQS/image.png or https://i.postimg.cc/SR2sT6pr/image.png.

For more information, visit: https://www.historicsmithfield.org/events or https://www.facebook.com/historicsmithfield1774 or https://www.facebook.com/events/1663530205060708/ or https://www.instagram.com/historicsmithfield/ or call 540-231-3947.