[Moo] Dog Mart Opening Ceremonies and Archery this coming Saturday

[Barbara Miller]

Greetings all!
Allen is leading the contingent going to the Dog Mart on Saturday 26 this year. He is planning on being at the Izaak Walton League park at 8am to help with setup, and arrange for the dogs we will "trade" with the indians, and find out where he (and any others who wish to join him) will be set up teaching and letting young archers shoot. 
The Opening Ceremonies will be about 11:30ish. We need some guys in Elizabethian Garb to stand in as the Colonists. I think the Pamunkey tribe is coming this year. So far, the Colonists are Allen, Greg Raines (Izaak Walton League president), Wolfe, and Steve R. I will send the tub of male Elizabethian Garb...
The rest of the day, the Izaak Walton folks have asked if we could offer archery to the younger set. The group they have had in the past is doing something else this year. Allen will be bringing loaner archery gear. He will need some marshals to help...
He will have his rapier and heavy gear, and fencing to set aside a ring, if anyone else wishes to bring thier gear and have an impromptu demo or even a practice if folks wish...
The Dog Mart is this Saturday, Sept 26, from 9:30am-4pm. Folks/participants setting up come in earlier. It is at 12400 Herndon Rd, Spotsylvania Co. The event is free, but there is a $5 parking fee  (come early, and I have never had to pay for parking). see fredericksburgdogmart.com   for more info....  This is the site we have held Defending the Gate for many years.
For those not familiar with the Dog Mart, this is the oldest dog event in the United States, 317 years old! In 1698, the English settlers along the Rappahannok River arranged to have an annual event to trade English hunting dogs for local produce and furs. The indians' hunting methods had changed, and they were desirous of the dogs for hunting. The Dog Mart continured until after the Revolutionary war, then became more sporatic through the mid 1900s. It was revived in 1948 by the Izaak Walton League and the Fredericksburg Chamber of Commerce as an event with dogs (parades with dogs, dog shows, vendors with dog related things, and a fun day overall). For the past about 8 years, our group has participated in the Opening Ceremonies "re-enacting the origins of the Dogmart", portraying colonists.... (Ok, the acuracy bit of me knows fashions have changed between 1590 and 1690, but most viewers are clueless, and those of us who know must be forgiven....)
--Blitha

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.stierbach.org/pipermail/moo-stierbach.org/attachments/20150924/f8323991/attachment-0001.htm>