PHOTO BY SPENSER HASAK
Elaine McNeely of Swampscott stands guard on a wall of Fort Sewall in Marblehead during a Revolutionary War reenactment on Saturday.
Last Saturday’s annual Glover’s Regiment encampment at Fort Sewall in Marblehead is a reminder how the past is constantly present on the North Shore. With summer in full swing, it is important for children to combine outdoor fun with learning and appreciating the area’s history.
The encampment is a reminder that July 4th celebrations represented a culmination or high point in the nation’s formative history. But the stars and stripes and fireworks were the product of years-worth of suffering, sacrifice and daunting efforts to fight for freedom.
The role Glover and the troops he commanded played in the American revolution extended far beyond Marblehead, including their pivotal role in keeping the cause for liberty alive in its darkest hours.
A similar opportunity to reflect on the people and events who built the nation comes on July 12 when Saugus Iron Works is the site for Massachusetts Militia History Comes Alive, an all-day event with militia re-enactors from two time periods exhibiting pike and musket drills, dressing like colonists and ending the day with musket firing demonstrations.
The reenactment probably has a slim chance of competing against the allure of a day at the beach or a trip to an amusement park. But a few hours spent steeped in history opens a door for families with kids to appreciate other opportunities to study the history of Lynn, Saugus and other area communities.
The Grand Army of the Republic building’s trove of Civil War history is a resource opened to students during the school year. But a summertime tour of the Andrew Street, Lynn building offers a glimpse into history mirrored across the city in the names of streets and squares.
The Grand Army building is maintained by the city but the treasures housed inside it can bring history alive in schools, including ones with names reflecting Lynn’s connection to the City Hall.
A walk through the building is also a chance to inspire young people during the summer to find ways to study and preserve the city’s historic resources. Spending an hour learning about why intersections in the city bear a specific name is a chance to learn about the sacrifice of a local resident who once attended a neighborhood school and grew up, perhaps, on the same street as someone attending the same school today.
Historic cemeteries located off Union Street, Silsbee Street and South Common Street, as well as smaller ones tucked into corners of Peabody, Revere and other cities and towns need attention from young amateur historians.
The age of smartphones puts young minds at the center of a busy, chaotic world where a relentless information bombardment can confuse and distort kids who aren’t grounded in history and appreciating what a study of the past has to offer.
Modern technology offers fingertip access to information. But a few hours spent probing and questioning the past offers mental discipline and the opportunity for intelligent and critical analysis all too-often lacking in a hurry-up, Google-driven age.
The days are long, the weather warm and history’s rich gifts lie just below the surface in Lynn and every community around it.