Step back in time to the late 18th century! This free family-friendly outdoor festival will feature costumed reenactors and hands-on activities.
September was the time of year when tenant farmers on the Philipse Manor would harvest their wheat and start to bring it to the Philipse grist mills for assessment and grinding into flour. September was also apple harvest time in the Philipse orchards. Try your hand at grinding grain in a stone mill, grinding up apples for cider in a cider press, and other hands-on activities.
Meet military and civilian reenactors, including General George Washington and his horse Nelson, members of Lord Dunmore’s Ethiopian Regiment and the First Rhode Island Regiment, colonial era craftspeople, and more.
Enjoy live 18th century music from Carla & Keyes and try old-fashioned country dancing. Visit a traveling exhibit from the Odell House/Rochambeau Headquarters Museum. Play colonial-era games, try your hand at our Revolutionary War spy activity, and learn more about the history of Westchester County before and during the American Revolution.
Sponsored in part by the Maurice D. Hinchey Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area and the Friends of Philipse Manor Hall.
Spice & Milling History
with Sarah Wassberg Johnson, ongoing outdoors
We associate pumpkin spice with the fall, but did you know that the desire for spices drove European exploration of the world? And that sugar was reserved for the super-rich until the development of sugar plantations in the Caribbean? Learn about the spice trade and sugar trade and try your hand at using a mortar and pestle to grind your own sugar and spice mix to take home! Try grinding whole cinnamon, cloves, allspice, black pepper, and sugar, then use a nutmeg grater to add some whole nutmeg.
Philipse Manor was home to hundreds of European tenant farmers all growing wheat for export to the sugar islands. The Philipse family had two mills in Westchester - the Upper Mill at Sleepy Hollow, and the Lower Mills here in Yonkers. Both were run by enslaved millers. Learn why Frederick Philipse I chose to use enslaved millers, learn how gristmills work, and try your hand at grinding grain in a stone quern!
Cider Pressing
with the Friends of Philipse Manor Hall, ongoing outdoors
September is apple harvest season and the orchards at Philipse Manor Hall would have been put to good use by the Philipse family. Stored whole apples, dried apples, and especially apple cider were important fall and winter treats. Fresh cider was consumed quickly. Any leftovers were turned into hard cider or cider vinegar. Try your hand at grinding apples in our small cider press!
Historical Games
with John Farrell, all day on the back lawn
People in the 18th century worked hard, but they also spent long winter nights at play. Try your hand at historical outdoor and tabletop games like quoits, ninepins, graces, Nine Men’s Morris, mancala, and more. Fun for all ages!
18th Century Country Dancing
with Carla & Keyes, under the main tent
Join musicians Carla & Keyes as they teach you the basics of 18th Century English country dancing. If you can walk, you can dance!
Explore information from area heritage organizations including:
St. Paul's Church National Historic Site
One of more than 400 national parks, Saint Paul's Church National Historic Site in Mount Vernon preserves more than 300 years of history. It was the colonial town common of Eastchester and served as a war hospital and fort in the Revolutionary War. It is one of 11 National Parks of New York Harbor in the immediate New York City area.
Yonkers Historical Society
Revolutionary Westchester 250
Odell House/Rochambeau Headquarters
Odell House/Rochambeau Headquarters
on display in the Gothic Chamber
The Friends of Odell House/Rochambeau Headquarters will display a selection of artifacts from their collection in this special, one-day-only pop-up exhibit.
Revolutionary New York & Westchester County
on display in the Gothic Chamber
This new traveling exhibit by Philipse Manor Hall gives a general overview of New York in the American Revolution, including information about the Hudson River, the Westchester neutral zone, Indigenous peoples in the war, the Philipse family in the Revolution, the Philipsburg Proclamation, Black Loyalists, the First Rhode Island Regiment, and more.
