It wasn’t July 4, 1776, but with the Declaration of Independence on site and primed for signing Saturday at the Daniel Boone Homestead, it might as well have been.
A copy of the document, as well as a portrayal of the famous general whose actions solidified said independence, were among the many sights on display at the Exeter Township historic site’s celebration of the nation’s 250th anniversary.
The event served as a reminder of the critical role Berks County played in the war effort as part of the “breadbasket” keeping Washington’s army fed.
“This was a big supply area,” reenactor Dennis Cooke said. “That’s where they wanted to keep the stuff; they didn’t want it getting stolen.
Dressed head to toe in Colonial soldier’s garb, Cooke portrayed an aide to Washington. The general himself was played by John Godzieba of Langhorne, Bucks County.
“(Washington) met Daniel Boone during the French and Indian War,” Godzieba said. “Daniel Boone was a wagoner out by Fort Duquesne.”
Boone and Washington’s association may have been brief, but the two share an immortal kinship as heroes of the early American period.
Boone’s trailblazing exploits in the American wilds and adventures among the Shawnee and other Native American tribes cemented the frontiersman as a legendary figure.
His story began in a log house, on the grounds of the 579-acre homestead. The house was built by his father, Squire Boone, in 1730.
By 1750, the land had changed hands to the DeTurks, a family of Pennsylvania German farmers.
“John DeTurk served in the (revolutionary) militia,” said Amanda Machik, manager of events and programs at Daniel Boone. “That’s kind of the connection here.”
Special celebration
Machik said the goal of the event was to celebrate the anniversary of the Declaration’s signing.
“Since we always do a July 4 program, we thought we’ll kind of merge (that and the anniversary),” Machik said. “This is much larger than what we usually do for the Fourth.”
In the Boone House, Brittany McMichael and her daughters Ida, 4, and Karolina, 8, were displaying some of the crops that would have been sold by the farm at the time.
Brittany McMichael of Boyertown displays vegetables that would have been grown on a farm in the late 18th century with her children from left Ida, 4; Karolina, 8; and Eleanor, 11, during the Colonial 250th Anniversary Celebration at the Daniel Boone Homestead in Exeter Township on Saturday, June 27, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
“Radishes, potatoes, tomatoes, green beans, anything that’s going to be coming in in season,” McMichael said of the harvest.
In another room, reenactors displayed examples of leatherwork and garments.
“I think it helps history be touchable,” said Aldona Jones, of Spring City, Chester County, a reenactor displaying examples of working class and upper-class dresses.
Aldona Jones of Spring City, Chester County, talks about women’s attire in the late 18th century during the Colonial 250th Anniversary Celebration at the Daniel Boone Homestead in Exeter Township on Saturday, June 27, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
“Upper class (women) would have had beautiful silks or cottons,” Jones said. “It would have been extremely expensive, because they would have been block-printed, and there was a whole chemistry to printing fabric.”
She said women on summer days would wear natural fibers like linen to help keep cool.
Elsewhere, a rendition of “Yankee Doodle” lilted through the grounds, courtesy of the Brandywine Colonials Fife and Drum corps.
Fifer Pete Snow said fifing and drums were used to communicate battle commands.
“(The fife) carries long distance, as do snare drums,” said Snow. “You do end up being heard long distances, which helped direct the army, so that a flank would know what to do.”
Pete Snow of Allentown plays the fife as part of the Brandywine Colonial Fife and Drum Corps during the Colonial 250th Anniversary Celebration at the Daniel Boone Homestead in Exeter Township on Saturday, June 27, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
Snow noted that fifers and drummers wore opposite colors from the army, with revolutionaries wearing red.
“The musicians were (often) kids and they (soldiers) didn’t want to kill kids,” Snow said. “So, when (the British) saw a red coat, they knew it was a kid.”
Joshua Fink, directed the playing using a “mace” crafted with an elegant, gold inlaid pattern.
Fink noted that the musicians played wake up calls in the morning as well as songs to keep morale up when marching.
Griffin Parish, 3, got a taste of the soldier’s life during a mock muster activity where participants were instructed on the use of the Pennsylvania long rifle, a staple of forces from the area.
Griffin Parish, 3, son of Alex and Jeremy Parish of Birdsboro, drills with a toy rifle during the Colonial 250th Anniversary Celebration at the Daniel Boone Homestead in Exeter Township on Saturday, June 27, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
Cannon display
Another unmissable feature was a giant, 4,500-pound cannon, which was excavated from the historic Warwick Furnace in Chester County.
“George Washington saw these, then 245 years later, they were dug up,” said Penny Hunt of the French and Pickering Creeks Conservatoin Trust.
Penny Hunt of the French and Pickering Creeks Conservatoin Trust talks about a Warwick Furnace Cannon that was made during the Revolutionary War during the Colonial 250th Anniversary Celebration at the Daniel Boone Homestead in Exeter Township on Saturday, June 27, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
She said the cannons fired 18-pound balls.
The demonstrations included open-hearth cooking as well as blacksmithing and gunsmithing and displays of everything from medical instruments to period-correct toys.
The event culminated with the signing of the Declaration in the evening.
Machik noted that the homestead is seeking volunteers. Opportunities include tour and school program guides as well as research, gardening, special event and front desk assistance. For more information, call 610-582-4900.
A wagon ride was one of the attractions during the Colonial 250th Anniversary Celebration at the Daniel Boone Homestead in Exeter Township on Saturday, June 27, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)