October 5, 2006

RamCorps to Perform at Old St. Stephens Day;

Event Features Old-Fashioned Family Fun

The sounds of a blacksmith’s hammer and the smells of barbecue will fill St. Stephens Park in Washington County during Old St. Stephens Day on Saturday, Oct. 28.

The public is invited to participate in the event that celebrates the history of St. Stephens, Alabama’s first capitol. The celebration will begin at St. Stephens Park at 9 a.m., include a concert by the University of Mobile’s RamCorps drum and bugle corps along with a Battle of the High School Drum Lines, and conclude with a fireworks display at dusk. Fried catfish, Creole cuisine and barbecue will be available. Additional offerings include a bass tournament on the Tombigbee, performances of the play “Through the Eyes of a Child,” local arts and crafts, the Little Miss Mary Welsh Contest, and more.  Admission is $5 for adults and $2 for children ages 12 and under. For more information, contact the St. Stephens Historical Society at (251) 246-6790.

Jim Long, director of the St. Stephens Historical Society, said the family-friendly event includes the 4th annual presentation of “Through the Eyes of a Child,” a look at the life and times of the people of St. Stephens during the 1800s.

According to Long, the idea was born in 1899 when Mary Welsh, who grew up in the old capital city, recalled life in the town as she remembered it in her “Reminiscences of Old St. Stephens” for the first Old St. Stephens Day in 1899.

“Children in period costumes will be stationed at vignettes throughout the town to interpret the sites to visitors,” Long said. “Adults, also in period clothing, will demonstrate salt making, blacksmithing, smoke house techniques, and other crafts of the early 1800s.”

A collection of artifacts from the archeological excavations at the Globe Hotel will be on display, as will the structural remains of the hotel and outbuildings.

Activities on stage begin at 10 a.m. with the Little Miss Mary Welsh Contest and continue with performances of local talent. Performances of “Through the Eyes of a Child” will be presented continuously from 1-4 p.m.

The University of Mobile RamCorps will perform at approximately 5:30 p.m. RamCorps is UM’s elite drum and bugle corps composed of 11 brass instrumentalists and five percussionists. The group features a high-impact, choreographed repertoire. Since its inception in the fall of 2004, RamCorps has performed in over 130 venues, representing the University of Mobile locally in the southeastern United States and internationally in Europe. The group performed at the Alabama Policy Institute dinner with Oliver North, at UM Christmas Spectacular and StarLight at the University of Mobile, and at the Southern Baptist National Instrumental Exposition. RamCorps has also showcased its talent at BayBears games, in college and high school gymnasiums and in church auditoriums. The group is under the direction of Don Wolf, assistant professor of music and director of instrumental studies at the University of Mobile.

Old St. Stephens Day is the public conclusion to unique history experience for area fourth and fifth grade students. School groups will take guided tours of the town on Oct. 25-27 and view a performance of “Through the Eyes of a Child.”

Directions to St. Stephens Park: From Mobile take I-65 North to the Creola Exit.  Proceed north on Highway 43 approximately 50 miles.  Turn left at the brown St. Stephens Park sign which is at Mile Marker 53 onto the Mobile Cut-off road.  Follow this road to the first paved right turn and follow to dead end on Highway 34 West.  Follow signs to St. Stephens Park.