This year marks 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and nationwide, events are planned to commemorate this significant milestone in our nation’s history.

In Washington state, the passage of Senate Bill 5756 during the 2022 legislative session established the Washington Semiquicentennial Committee whose purpose is to provide guidance on the state’s observance of America’s 250th.

The Semiquicentennial Committee has 17 members that include the Washington State Arts Commission, Governor’s Office of Indian Affairs and Washington State Historical Society; the Committee is chaired by Denny Heck, lieutenant governor of Washington state. An attendee at the Committee’s quarterly meetings is Nancy Cuyle as the facilitator for the Grays Harbor Museum Association.

The Grays Harbor Museum Association formed in 2016. To avoid adding more duties onto volunteers who are already running their respective museums, it’s not a formal organization and Cuyle serves as facilitator. They meet during the fall, winter and spring.

“We started out with 14 organizations, we’re now up to 18,” Cuyle said. “It’s a really great group. Our whole function is to try to figure out how to support each other and to do what we can do to increase the knowledge and viability of all the museums.”

For America’s 250th, the Grays Harbor Museum Association will print a county-wide Passport to Grays Harbor History, which they also did 10 years ago. At each participating museum passport holders visited, they received a stamp. However, due to the size of the county, no one managed to visit all the museums. So for this passport, a different approach is being taken.

“We’re going to split the county into five pieces — northwest, southwest, north, east and central — and each of those groups will have between two and four museums in it,” Cuyle said.

Producing the passport and stamps is covered by funding provided by Humanities Washington, said Cuyle, “and we’re certainly grateful for that.”

The passports will be available soon at the participating museums. Cuyle said that closer to summer there will be kickoff events in each of the sections.

Later this month, History98520 is launching a city-wide America’s 250th exhibit. Each month, the windows of vacant buildings will be filled with photos on a specific theme, such as ships and ship building, fisheries and canneries, and fires and fire departments. At 201 E. Broadway in Aberdeen, The Moore building’s 20 windows will feature photos on the theme of Aberdeen being the lumber capital of the world.

“We’ve not done something like this before,” said Ruth Halter, president of History98520. “I think it will be really fun when it’s finished.”

The Pizza Hut building, at 100 W. Wishkah in Aberdeen, is next with its windows to feature the county’s sawmill legacy. Funding for this project was provided by the Downtown Aberdeen Association and the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee.

The McCleary Museum and Event Center had scheduled an America’s 250th event on Feb. 21 — The Fox: A Revolutionary War Murder Mystery — but the event will be rescheduled.

America’s 250th events in Grays Harbor

With the year only started, the list of scheduled events is short, but in the coming months, the list will grow. If your city, museum, or organization is hosting an event that you would like to see included in this calendar, please email andrea.watts@thedailyworld.com.

What the Constitution Means to Me – The Driftwood Players

120 East 3rd Street, Aberdeen

What the Constitution Means to Me is a playful and incisive analysis of the U.S. Constitution that examines how this living document could evolve to fit modern day America. The piece is based on the experiences of 15-year-old Heidi Schreck, who put herself through college by giving speeches about the U.S. Constitution. Now, she resurrects her teenage self to trace the document’s profound impact on four generations of women.

June 26-27, July 3-4 at 7:30, June 28 and July 4 at 2:00 p.m.

https://main.aberdeendriftwood.com/

Who all in Grays Harbor participating in America’s 250th?

Grays Harbor County

City of Cosmopolis

City of Elma

City of Hoquiam

City of Montesano

City of Ocean Shores

Daughters of the American Revolution (Robert Gray Chapter)

Friends of the Aberdeen Museum

Grays Harbor County Fairgrounds

Grays Harbor Genealogical Society

Grays Harbor Historical Seaport

Lake Quinault Museum and Historical Society

McCleary Museum and Event Center

North Beach Genealogical Society

Ocean Shores Public Library

Polson Museum

Pacific Beach Elementary