The Second Annual Harmon Field Heritage Days will be on Saturday and Sunday, March 27 and 28. Camp opens both days at 9 a.m. Camp will close at 9 p.m. on Saturday and 4 p.m. on Sunday. For full details visit the web site at www.harmonfield.com or call 828-894-3370.

Thursday and Friday, March 25 and 26, approximately 750 students from local schools will be participating in the Harmon Field Educational Heritage Days. Students will experience life in a Civil War camp, learn about crafts synonymous with the Civil War era, and play games that children played in the 1800s.

There is still room for homeschooled children to come on Friday, to be ready to begin their rotation by 11:30 a.m. Parking will be at the equestrian entrance of Harmon Field. The Line Up Arena will be the parking for the open-air gym. Homeschooled children need to line up by traffic cone 12 in the Line Up Arena. We want to start rotations as close to 11:30 a.m. as possible.

Saturday and Sunday are open at no cost to the public, unless otherwise stated. The Polk County Community Foundation, North Carolina Civil War Tourism Counsel, Harmon Foundation, and Thermal Belt Rotary have sponsored heritage Days, allowing it to be free to the public.

The Harmon Field entrance beside the tennis courts will be closed off to vehicles on Thursday, March 25, from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and on Friday, March 26, from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. to provide safety for all of the students that will be present for Educational Days.

The troops are really getting excited about this years Heritage Days, Captain David Smith reported. We should have twice as many troops as last year, and all are ready for some good skirmishes. We have two cannons this year, along with the possibility of a Civil War replica wagon, Smith explained. In fact, it appears we will even have a Civil War replica wagon at our camp.

The soldiers say they are eager for the public to meander through their camp, sit by the fire and talk with them to get the feel of what a Civil War camp was like in Western North Carolina during the waning days of the war.

New additions to this years event, Director Lorna Dever reported, are Carriage Rides, the Barn Dance, and a larger Civil War Museum display. Harmon Field Museum will make its debut with some excellent photography from the early years of Harmon Field.

Carolina Horse and Carriage will be offering carriage rides Saturday and Sunday throughout the day. Riders will be entertained with a storyteller with stories from Civil War days.

Another highlight to the weekend will be Saturday nights Barn Dance. We are pleased to have dance callers, Raquelle and Heather Sheen, be the hosts, and live musicians Austin and The Back Porch Pickers, join us for the Barn Dance. There is a five-dollar donation recommended for the Barn Dance. Even if you do not know how to dance, Raquelle and Heather will be happy to guide you through your steps.

The Civil War Museum and Harmon Field Museum will be set up in the old middle school building. Several classrooms will be entering exhibits in the Civil War Museum.

Harmon Field Museum will make its debut on Heritage Days weekend. Many pictures of Harmon Field from years gone by will be on display. Dever plans to share what she has been able to collect thus far for her book, Harmon Fields of America ~ The Living History of William E. Harmon.

Thanks to Foothills Mountain Barbecue, the public will be able to purchase food right at Harmon Fields open-air gym. Food will be available Saturday and Sunday throughout the day. Saturday evening, there is a barbecue supper planned at 5 p.m.

North Carolina Magazine has contacted Captain Smith about doing some filming, especially of the soldiers working around their campfires. WSPA and WLOS plan to be present on Thursday or Friday to film some of the activities with the students, and UNC-TV will be arriving about 11 a.m. Saturday to do filming for a future N.C. Now program.

For more information and schedules, visit the web site at www.harmonfield.com, following the link for Heritage Days, or call 828-894-3370.