The Highlands Historical Society will host its annual Descendants’ Reception on Saturday, Sept. 27 at the Community Building in Highlands. Families who can trace their roots to Highlands back for 100, or more, years are invited to attend. Last year’s Descendants’ Reception was forced to be canceled due to the aftermath of Hurricane Helene and the hope is that attendance will swell as the Town of Highlands celebrates its 150th Anniversary this year.
This year’s gathering will include a presentation entitled “Creating a Family Story”. There will also be music by local vocalist Carol Criminger Grantham, stories by historic family members and an opportunity to sign up to have family stories recorded for preservation and use by the Historical Society. Tracy Foor and long-time Highlands resident, Mike Thompson, will co-host the event.
“The goal of the Descendants’ Reception is to provide a setting for all families of early settlers of Highlands and surrounding areas to commune together, and to welcome newcomers to join in and see the complex relations between Highlands’ early settlers and all families involved,” describes Thompson. “Memories disappear in space and become lost in time if they aren’t recorded. Preservation procures future knowledge and is the only pathway for generations ahead to have questions answered about your family.”
The Highlands Historical Society is attempting to collect oral histories to honor the memories and stories of long-time Highlands’ families. The goal is to promote those histories by posting videos on their website through a monthly “Featured Family” which will gift the Highlands community with a brief glimpse of the past through the eyes of each families’ story.
“The history of a community is best told by the families that lived that history,” said Foor. “Oral histories have been described as ‘the first kind of history’. Their personal nature makes them a great source for people wanting to discover more about a certain event or era. We hope events like these become a catalyst for all families to begin preserving their own histories and HHS is attempting to provide the tools for that to happen more easily.”
The Descendants’ Reception will be held on Saturday, Sept. 27 from 11a.m. – 1p.m. at the Highlands Community Building located at 869 N. 4th Street. The event is free of charge and a light lunch will be included. If you are interested in participating in this year’s Descendants’ Reception, please pre-register at highlands100plus@gmail.com. For more information go to highlandshistory.com.
The celebration of Highlands’ 150th Anniversary will continue that day with the Highlands Heritage Jamboree, sponsored by the Highlands Chamber of Commerce, beginning at 1p.m. in Kelsey-Hutchinson Park. There will be music by the Navy Band, bluegrass music by Darren Nicholson and the Shedhouse Trio, clogging, moonshine and more!
