ADDISON — Aug. 16 is Vermont’s state holiday, commemorating Bennington Battle Day and the stunning American victory over the British at this Aug. 16, 1777, Revolutionary War battle. To celebrate, everyone is invited to visit the Vermont’s State-Owned Historic Sites on Friday, Aug. 16, when admission will be free to Vermont residents and Vermonters at heart.
Three Vermont state historic sites open on Bennington Battle Day are part of the American Revolution’s story. In 1776 and 1777 American forces built Mount Independence in Orwell, now the least disturbed Revolutionary War site in America. American troops withdrew from there on the night of July 5 and 6, 1777, with the American rear guard engaging the forces of British Gen. John Burgoyne at the Battle of Hubbardton. The Hubbardton Battlefield in Hubbardton preserves the July 7, 1777, location of the Revolution’s only battle fought in Vermont. The 306-foot-tall Bennington Battle Monument, the tallest structure in Vermont and the tallest Revolutionary War battle monument in the United States, marks the site of the Bennington arsenal British and German troops were trying to capture that Aug. 16 day they were soundly defeated at the Battle of Bennington. The monument is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
On Aug.16 admission is also free at the Chimney Point State Historic Site in Addison and President Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site in Plymouth Notch, one of the best-preserved presidential sites in the country. All the historic sites other than the Bennington Battle Monument are open 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more information visit www.historicsites.vermont.gov.