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Falls Village celebrates Fourth with cannon fire, time capsule

Falls Village celebrates Fourth with cannon fire, time capsule

A Fourth of July parade makes its way through downtown Falls Village.

Patrick L. Sullivan

FALLS VILLAGE – Downtown Falls Village was filled with residents celebrating the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence on Saturday, July 4.

Four former first selectmen, Pat Mechare, Henry Todd, Lou Timolat and Chuck Lewis, joined current First Selectman Dave Barger in taking turns reading the Declaration. Timolat, Lewis and Barger were in period dress.

Timolat began the reading and was soon interrupted by a blast from a cannon operated by Dusty Blass of D. Blass Excavation, followed by a shout “Happy Birthday!”

After a brief pause, with smoke lingering in the background, he continued.

The reading followed a parade, led by violinist Rachell Gall and guitarist Jim Stey, who played a colonial-era tune.

The parade also featured fire trucks – including one carrying Dave and Carmela Barger portraying George and Martha Washington – vintage vehicles, members of the Falls Village Volunteer Fire Department, and members of the Falls Village-Canaan Historical Society, who were also dressed in period costume.

Also in costume was Selectman Judy Jacobs portraying Betsy Ross.

Vintage vehicles joined the parade in Falls Village. Patrick L. Sullivan

State Rep. Maria Horn (D-64) led the Pledge of Allegiance, and students from Lee H. Kellogg School gave the crowd a preview of the time capsule they prepared.

The time capsule contains letters written by students, a copy of the latest town report, cards from local businesses, a brochure from the historical society, and pennies. Krista Barger, a paraeducator at the school, said that the students thought it important to include the now-discontinued pennies.

The time capsule will be buried in front of the historical society building on Railroad Street. Organizers are still deciding when it will be opened, though Barger said they are leaning toward 50 years from now, when the students who created it will be in their early 60s.

Falls Village celebrates Fourth with cannon fire, time capsule Patrick L. Sullivan

Patrick L. Sullivan
Senior Reporter
Patrick Sullivan has been a reporter for The Lakeville Journal since 2004, covering everything from town meetings to local characters and the outdoors. He grew up in Northern Virginia but spent summers on Mount Riga in Salisbury, giving him a lifelong connection to the Northwest Corner. A graduate of Denison University, Patrick is also the author of Tangled Lines, the newspapers’ popular fly-fishing column—making The Lakeville Journal, as far as anyone knows, the only newspaper in Connecticut with a regular fly-fishing columnist. He once received a fan letter from England, which he considers sufficient evidence that his work has achieved international acclaim.
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