Old Bethpage Village Restoration Celebrates "1863 Thanksgiving"

Old Bethpage Village Restoration (OBVR) will provide a 19th-century-style Thanksgiving celebration on November 18 (Sunday) and 24 - 25 (Saturday - Sunday), announced Nassau County Executive Thomas R. Suozzi.

During those days, visitors to the 209-acre recreated 19th-century village will be able to enjoy the sights and smells of an old-fashioned Thanksgiving. Wood-burning stoves, beehive stoves, beehive ovens and hearths will all be fired up to prepare a variety of foods and baked goods made from 19th-century recipes. The culinary exhibits include the "spitting" and roasting of turkey in a tin reflector oven beside the Williams House hearth and preparation of pies at the Powell House.

OBVR will also display 19th-century methods of food preservation employed for late fall crops. Meanwhile, each afternoon between noon and 4 p.m., historical period music will be played, including fiddle tunes, as was done after Thanksgiving in the 19th century. At the Noon Inn, children's stories will be read several times each day.

"This program, which is itself a tradition at Old Bethpage Village, is a wonderful way for Long Islanders to connect with 19th-century American culture during one of our most significant na-tional holidays," says OBVR Site Director and Curator Jim McKenna.

Old Bethpage Village Restoration provides visitors with a unique opportunity to step back in time and experience life in a large, recreated mid-19th-century American village set on more than 200 acres. It is located on Round Swamp Road in Old Bethpage (exit 48 on the LIE); for more information, call 516-572-8400.

Hours at OBVR are Wednesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Entrance fees are $5 (children 4 - 14, seniors and volunteer firefighters) and $7 (adults); children under four years of age are admitted free. Old Bethpage Village will be closed for the Thanks-giving Holiday on Thursday, November 22.and Friday, November 23.

For more information about the Parks Department, visit www.nassaucountyny.gov/parks or call 516-572-0200.