Gadsby’s Tavern Museum Children’s Days
Children’s Day at Gadsby’s Tavern features 90-minute tours with stationed “hands-on” activities designed for families and groups of children to bring 18th-century to life. Activities include story telling, candle making, meeting a pirate, dressing up in 18th-century clothes, and playing colonial games.
Families, groups, camps, and schools are welcome, July 18 and Aug. 9 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Gadsby’s Tavern Museum, 134 N. Royal St. Cost is $5 per person (ages 3 and up) or $3 per person for groups of 8 or more. Reservations are required, call 703-838-4242.
Lantern-Light Tours at Gadsby’s
See Gadsby’s Tavern Museum in a whole new light — lantern light. Tour the circa1785 tavern and 1792 City Hotel during the summer season with costumed guides as you experience the tavern as patrons did over 200 years ago before the advent of electricity.
Tours are every Friday night, June through August from 7–10 p.m. Tickets are $5 per person ages 5 and up. Tours last approximately 30 minutes, with the last tour starting at 9:15 p.m. Some Friday nights are unavailable for tours due to special events or holidays. Call ahead to confirm tour date. This event is open to the public and is suitable for all ages. For more information call 703-838-4242 or visit www.gadsbystavern.org. Gadsby’s Tavern Museum is located at 134 N. Royal St.
Hands-On History at Mount Vernon
The Hands-on History Exhibit at George Washington’s Mount Vernon offers children fun activities while teaching about 18th-century life, daily from 10 a.m.–3 p.m through Sept. 4. Children of all ages can explore this activity area and learn about early-American life by carding and spinning wool, cross-mending artifacts, constructing wooden buckets, dressing up in colonial clothing, and playing colonial games such as hoops, darts, and graces. The “How Do You Measure Up to George Washington” exhibit features a life-size image of Washington, which allows children to measure-up to the first president.
At this site kids also experience what life was like for a soldier by crawling into a Revolutionary War tent and learn about camp. These young “soldiers” take on the life of an enlisted man serving under General Washington during the American Revolution and discover everyday objects used by the common soldier.