Step back in time for a day of food, music, and living history!
Hands-on demonstrations, live music, local artisans, and family activities bring 18th-century life to the present. Perfect for families, history lovers, and anyone who enjoys great food and live tunes.
Featured Highlights
Live Music: Afternoon sets from Ashlee Watkins & Andrew Small — traditional folk and colonial-inspired tunes.
Food: Local favorite Cooper Dog & Co. and a savory camp-cooking demonstration with fresh chicken and seasonal vegetables.
Hands-On History: Try blacksmithing, spinning, cider pressing, and explore a colonial militia encampment.
About the Event
Historic Smithfield’s Colonial Day invites you to experience living history first-hand.
Talk with demonstrators, sample camp cooking, and enjoy small-town hospitality.
What to expect:
Interactive demonstrations of colonial-era skills and trades
Local artisans offering crafts, candles, soaps, and homestead goods
Live music from Ashlee Watkins & Andrew Small
Family-friendly fun: games, dress-up, house tours, and animal encounters
Vendor Marketplace
Shop locally made goods and homestead products:
Designz by mimi
Urban Homesteader VA
Goat Haven Soap
FWM Candles LLC
Women’s Club of Radford
Demonstrations
Blacksmithing
Colonial militia encampment
Camp cooking over a live fire
Apple cider press
Spinning
Family Activities
Welcome Table & information booth
Guided house tours
Pet-a-pony encounter
Culinary herbs demonstration by Jean’s Apothecare
Furs & bones + colonial jobs matching game
Colonial games hosted by Blacksburg Ballet
Try on colonial clothes for photos
Make a piggy bank with Friends of St. Luke, Odd Fellows, and Household of Ruth
Visitor Information
Check in at the Welcome Table for maps and the day’s schedule
Restrooms and accessible facilities available
Bring comfortable shoes — much of the site is outdoors on grass and historic paths