Yorktown Victory Celebration – American Revolution Museum at Yorktown
Yorktown Victory Celebration – Saturday, October 14, 2023 American Revolution Museum at Yorktown
It’s almost time to salute Yorktown Day!
The 242nd anniversary of America’s momentous 1781 Revolutionary War victory at Yorktown will be celebrated Saturday, October 14 at the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown with artillery firings, military programs and music. Visitors can interact with Revolutionary War re-enactors and take part in interpretive demonstrations, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
At the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown, stories of citizens and soldiers unfold daily through immersive films, exhibition galleries and outdoor re-creations of a Continental Army encampment and Revolution-era farm.
2023 Yorktown Victory Celebration schedule of events
| 2023 YORKTOWN VICTORY CELEBRATION SCHEDULE | ||
|---|---|---|
| Time | Location | Description |
| All Day | Continental Army encampment | Battle of the Capes Discover the contributions of free and enslaved pilots during what is considered the most significant naval battle in American history. |
| All Day | Revolution-era farm | Life on the Farm Discover the variety of activities that would have been part of daily life on the farm for both the free and enslaved farmers, including cooking, gardening, basket-weaving and pastimes. |
| 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. | Revolution-era farm | 18th-century Foodways Indigenous people contributed to both sides of the American Revolution, while some remained neutral. Their food culture, as well as that of enslaved people from West Central Africa, contributed to what we recognize today as “American” food. Explore the convergence of cultures through food at the farm kitchen and enslaved people’s quarters. |
| 10:30 a.m. & 1:30 p.m. | Continental Army encampment | Meet a Person of the Past: Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau Enjoy this first-person encounter with Comte de Rochambeau, a French nobleman and general who led the French forces during the Siege of Yorktown, as portrayed by Michael Halbert. |
| 11 a.m. | Continental Army encampment | Fifes and Drums of York Town Enjoy the martial music of the 18th century. |
| 11:30 a.m. & 3:30 p.m. | Continental Army encampment | Artillery Demonstrations Join the artillery crew and learn firsthand about the importance of artillery during the Siege of Yorktown. Then cover your ears as the 18th-century crew fires the weapon! |
| 12:30 p.m. & 2:30 p.m. | Education Center Classrooms | Complex Decisions: Seeking Freedom on Both SidesJoin Harvey Bakari, senior curator of Black History and Culture, as he shares how Black soldiers and women made complex decisions for freedom with either the Americans or the British during the American Revolutionary War. |
| 1 p.m. | Continental Army encampment | Drill!Fall in line as a Continental soldier and practice drilling with a flintlock musket. |
Interpretive Demonstrations & Musical Performances
Visitors to the Continental Army encampment will discover aspects of military life, from enlistment to troop supplies and flintlock muskets to 18th-century medical care. Throughout the day, visitors can discover military tactics on land and at sea with a look at the Battle of the Capes, one of the most significant naval battles in American history.
Artillery demonstrations, showcasing the varied roles of the artillery crew, will take place in the outdoor amphitheater at 11:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., followed by the crew firing a salute in honor of the victory at Yorktown.
The Fifes and Drums of York Town will perform at 11 a.m. Guests can enjoy a first-person encounter with Comte de Rochambeau, a French nobleman and general who led the French forces during the Siege of Yorktown, as portrayed by Michael Halbert, at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
Farm visitors can learn about typical life of a Revolution-era farming family. Special demonstrations from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. will explore 18th-century foodways and the convergence of cultures through food at the farm kitchen and enslaved people’s quarters. Visitors also can enjoy demonstrations on gardening, basket-weaving and pastimes.
FREE ADMISSION FOR LOCAL RESIDENTS see if you qualify here
General admission to Jamestown Settlement and the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown is $30.00 for adults and $15.00 for ages 6-12.
Films & Exhibits
Daily indoors, visitors can take in the award-winning “Liberty Fever” introductory film and tour immersive exhibition galleries, including a 4D-experiential “Siege of Yorktown” theater that transports visitors to the Yorktown battlefield in 1781, with wind, smoke and the thunder of cannon fire. Actors portray allied Generals Washington and Rochambeau and British General Cornwallis as well as Joseph Plumb Martin, a member of the Continental Army’s Corps of Sappers and Miners who helped build fortifications at Yorktown, and Sarah Osborn, who followed the Continental Army with her husband and served food and coffee to the troops, as well as Alexander Hamilton in his first military role in the Continental Army and his famous words – “Rush on boys!” – as the militia secures Redoubts 9 and 10.
FREE ADMISSION FOR LOCAL RESIDENTS see if you qualify here
General admission to Jamestown Settlement and the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown is $30.00 for adults and $15.00 for ages 6-12.
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