The Civil War 150 HistoryMobile makes two-day stop in Harrisonburg

Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance presents the eighth annual Court & Market Days Festival on Saturday, June 2 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Turner Pavilion & Park in Downtown Harrisonburg.

In honor of the 150th Anniversary of Stonewall Jackson’s 1862 Valley Campaign, the festival will feature commemorative activities and exhibits, including the Civil War 150 HistoryMobile.

The Civil War 150 HistoryMobile is an 18-wheeler “museum on wheels” that will be in Harrisonburg for a two-day stop. The scheduled visit is part of the HistoryMobile’s four-year tour across the Commonwealth, which launched in 2011. The free exhibit will be located behind the City Municipal Building and will be open on Friday, June 1 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday, June 2 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. for school groups, visitors, and attendees of the festival to tour.

Drawing together stories from all over Virginia, the HistoryMobile uses state-of-the-art technology and immersive exhibit spaces to present individual stories of the Civil War and Emancipation from the viewpoints of those who experienced it—young and old, enslaved and free, soldiers and civilians. The imprint of the Civil War can be found on almost every inch of Virginia, and visitors are inspired and encouraged to explore this abundance of history through the HistoryMobile.

School groups are encouraged to schedule a guided tour of the HistoryMobile on Friday, June 1 from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm. Teachers can schedule a group or class tour by contacting Kim Kirk at [email protected]. The community is also invited to come discover all that the HistoryMobile has to offer during these times.

The exhibits were designed through a partnership between the Virginia Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Commission, the Virginia Historical Society, and the Fredericksburg/Spotsylvania National Battlefields Park. The HistoryMobile is also supported by the Virginia Tourism Corporation, through which visitors can obtain information on visiting Virginia Civil War sites at the exhibit, as well as by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. More information about the HistoryMobile can be found at http://www.downtownharrisonburg.org/v.php?pg=167.

For more information about Court & Market Days Festival, including a complete schedule of events, please call (540) 432-8922 or visit www.courtdaysfestival.org.