|
HUNTERSVILLE, NC: April is a month
for celebration. Rural Hill, Inc. and Rural
Hill, Center of Scottish Heritage, invite everyone to celebrate
National Tartan Day April 6 and April as National Scots,
Scots-Irish Heritage Month. Also in celebration, the 17th
Annual Rural Hill Scottish Festival and Loch Norman Highland
Games are set for April 17–18, 2010. Complete details,
schedules and advance tickets are available online at
www.ruralhillscottishfestivals.net.
A national holiday for all Scottish
Americans, National Tartan Day is April 6, 2010. The
volunteers of Rural Hill and Rural Hill, Inc.
invite you to wear your tartan to celebrate. In 1981, a
Carolinas Tartan was designed by the Scottish Tartan Society and
was adopted as the official tartan of Rural Hill, Inc..
National Scots, Scots-Irish
Heritage Month honors those of Scots/Scots-Irish ancestry
and recognizes their contributions in America’s history and its
success. Of the original thirteen governors of the
American Colonies, nine were
Scots/Scots-Irish. Of the fifty-six signers of
the
Declaration of Independence, almost half were of
Scots/Scots-Irish descent. From the framers of the Declaration
of Independence to the first man on the moon, Scottish-Americans
have contributed mightily to the fields of the arts, science,
politics, law, and more. Today, over eleven million Americans
claim Scots and Scots-Irish roots, making them the eighth
largest ethnic group in the United States. These are the people
and accomplishments that are honored through the month of April
and on National Tartan Day. April 6 has a special significance
for Americans of Scottish descent because the Declaration of
Arbroath, the Scottish Declaration of Independence, was signed
on April 6, 1320, and the American Declaration of Independence
was modeled on that inspirational document.
In addition to national
recognition, the Board of County Commissioners proclaimed April
6 as Tartan Day and April as Scottish Heritage Month in
Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. There are many signs of those
early Scottish settlers still found in the metropolitan
Charlotte area. The flag of the City of Charlotte is the St.
Andrew's Cross, the flag of Scotland, with the City of
Charlotte's seal in the center. The most notable historic
parallel is the
Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence. Although not signed
until May 20, 1775, the influence and independent spirit of
those Scottish Barons set an example that reverberated across
the centuries.
SAVE THE DATES IN APRIL! The
17th Annual Rural Hill Scottish Festival and Loch
Norman Highland Games are set for April 17–18, 2010. With
professional Scottish heavy athletic competition, amateur heavy
athletics, international as well as regional music talents in
Celtic rock, traditional and contemporary Celtic music, piping
and drumming, highland dancing, Scottish country dancing, harp
and fiddle competitions, children’s activities, open hearth
cooking demonstrations at our 1760’s homestead site and our
famous historic encampment, the weekend will be fun for the
entire family. Proceeds support the preservation of Rural
Hill. Complete details, schedules and advance tickets are
available online at
www.ruralhillscottishfestivals.net.
Rural Hill is located at 4431
Neck Road (off Beatties Ford Road) in Huntersville, 28078. The
former homestead of Major John and Violet Davidson, the 265 acre
site is maintained and promoted by Rural Hill, Inc. (CVSS). Rural Hill features annual events such as the
Rural Hill Scottish Festival and Loch Norman Highland Games, the
Rural Hill Amazing Maize Maze and the Rural Hill Sheep Dog
Trials. Education programs and tours are available throughout
the year. CVSS is a non-profit organization supported through
membership and donations, and with proceeds from its events
utilized for the preservation of historic Rural Hill and its
education efforts. For more information on events or for
financial support accepted securely online, please visit
www.ruralhill.net. |
