Shenandoah County Celebrates 1776

It started with an email and one really good lecture — and turned into the biggest day in Shenandoah County history in a generation. On this bonus Shenandoah County Tourism episode, host Janet Michael and Kary Haun head to the historic courthouse in Woodstock to talk with Suzanne McIlwee and Kim Yeck, co-chairs of Shenandoah County Celebrates 1776 — a free, full-day VA 250 commemoration happening Saturday, June 20, 2026, hosted by the Shenandoah County Historical Society. Suzanne and Kim walk through how a chapter-meeting idea grew into a downtown-wide event featuring the fifth great-grandson of Patrick Henry delivering "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death" in character, the 1st and 8th Virginia Regiments encamped on East Court Street, a mounted dragoon cavalry unit doing demonstrations, lectures running simultaneously in three churches, a Williamsburg-trained cordwainer, a master gunsmith, a tape loomist, an 18th-century surveyor, period authors and book signings, kids' activities and a scavenger hunt, historical dancing on the courthouse lawn at 4 PM, museums open all day, and a special 250 Celebration Ale being unveiled. Plus shuttle and parking info, the opening ceremony schedule, and one truly pressing question: do they still need a fifer? (Yes. Yes they do.) EVENT DETAILS — SHENANDOAH COUNTY CELEBRATES 1776 Saturday, June 20, 2026 Downtown Woodstock, Virginia • Centered on the historic courthouse, East Court Street, West Court Street, and Lawyer's Row Free admission • Rain or shine • Family-friendly • Colonial dress encouraged Opening ceremony: 10:00 AM at the historic courthouse (Theatre Shenandoah preview at 9:45) Event runs through the afternoon, with the historical dance on the courthouse lawn at 4:00 PM Street closures: East Court Street and a portion of West Court Street barricaded all day; Main Street briefly closed for the opening ceremony Parking: county administration building (600 N. Main Street) with shuttle service to East Court Street, running 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM; additional parking at the old Woodstock High School lot on West Court Street and at lots throughout town Museums open all day: historic courthouse, Marshall House, Wickham House, Ott-Magruder-Grable Museum KICKOFF EVENT — SAVE THE DATE Free screening of the 1776 movie — Sunday, June 14, 2026 • 4:30 PM Co-presented by the Shenandoah County Historical Society and Woodstock Community Theatre LINKS & RESOURCES • Event website: shenandoah250.org • Event Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ShenCo1776/ • Shenandoah County Historical Society — host organization, with archives and ancestry research support • Visit Shenandoah County: VisitShenandoahCounty.com • Play the fife? The organizers want to hear from you — contact via shenandoah250.org THE VALLEY TODAY with Janet Michael — A decade of conversations. New podcast episodes drop weekdays at 11 AM. Catch the show on The River 95.3 and Fox Sports 1450 AM weekdays just after noon. Subscribe and listen at thevalleytodaypodcast.com — available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your podcasts. If you enjoy the show, please take a moment to leave a rating or review — it helps more listeners find us. Connect with us: Facebook — facebook.com/ValleyTodayFanPage Instagram — instagram.com/thevalleytoday