History was unfolding Saturday as early morning rain and schedule shifts did not deter the mixture of history enthusiasts, attendees, re-enactors, and county officials who congregated under the pavilion on the historic battleground to observe the 247th Anniversary of the Battle of Minisink.

In a weekend full of commemorative programming, the day didn’t start off easy. Heavy downpours put a wedge in the afternoon’s event plans, forcing organizers to acclimate and reschedule the public reading of the Declaration of Independence and the subsequent Patriot and Loyalist tactical skirmish earlier than expected to dodge the showers. Apologies were given to attendees who arrived unaware of the schedule shifts by master of ceremonies, Sullivan County Historian, and President of the Delaware Company John Conway, who cited the challenges of communicating on-the-fly updates from a mountain clearing completely lacking cell service.

As promised, Conway proceeded with the ceremony by reminding attendees of the sheer historical presence of the grounds on which the commemoration was taking place.

“The words of Abraham Lincoln came to mind, who said, ‘The world will little note nor long remember what we say here today, but they will remember what the men who died did here.’ And I think that is very apropos,” Conway said. “The men who died here should be remembered, and it little matters what we say here today. Their memory should be honored and should go on.”

Keynote speaker and New York State Historian Devin Lander expressed the importance of inclusive remembrance through his address, titled “Revolutionary New York”. He reminded attendees that the American Revolution had its brutal tribulations that took place across the New York frontier, unfolding as a localized civil war that pitted neighbor against neighbor. He stressed that the conflict wasn’t just about the familiar faces of the era, but also the hard choices made by everyday citizens, indigenous communities, farmers, and enslaved folk who lived through those tumultuous times.

Lander noted that the ideals of the Revolution didn’t stop when the weapons were put away, but that they still continue to mold and challenge modern American life.

“We are still living through the American Revolution right now,” he said. “It’s not over. It didn’t end in 1783. New York played host to other revolutions from that period [onward] that directly utilized the words in some cases, but certainly the ideals of the American Revolution.”

Speaking of history, the ceremony also took a celebratory shift when surprise certificates were presented to Conway and his wife, Deborah Conway, by representatives from the Wayne Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR) to honor the couple’s year-long dedication to local historical preservation and research. Pleasantly surprised and taken aback, Conway emphasized that the real credit should be shared with his living history museum staff, whom he praised as among the most dedicated in the country.

On a more reflective note, the commemoration also honored and acknowledged the names of the 46 Known Fallen of the Battle of Minisink by staff members of the Fort Delaware Museum, accompanied by a traditional military memorial fire from the Navasin Long Rifles.

Keeping with the theme of tribute, an “Ashokan Farewell” was performed by Elektra Kehagias to close out the ceremony as attendees were invited to join guided walking tours of the battleground and visit the living history military encampments, which remained open into the evening.