Community Day to feature fun, George Washington-style

Colonial America will come alive on the SMU campus July 20 at SMU Community Day, inspired by the on-campus exhibit of George Washington’s copy of the U.S. Constitution.

SMU Community DayDALLAS (SMU) – Colonial America will come alive on the SMU campus July 20 at SMU Community Day, inspired by the on-campus exhibit of George Washington’s copy of the U.S. Constitution.

Kids can write with a quill pen, make a yarn toy or play Colonial games. A fife and drum corps and historical interpreters in costume will set the tone from 9 a.m. to noon on the Laura Bush Promenade west of the Fondren Library Center.

Visitors to SMU Community Day will receive a 20 percent off coupon to the George W. Bush Presidential Center for July 20, where Community Day continues in the afternoon with an exhibit of presidential artifacts from James Monroe to Ronald Reagan, hands-on Mount Vernon activities and a video presentation..

George Washington’s personal copy of the Acts of Congress, which includes the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights and other legislation passed by the first session of Congress, will be displayed July 14-27 at SMU’s DeGolyer Library. The 106-page volume is emblazoned with Washington’s bookplate and includes his handwritten notes in the margins. The DeGolyer exhibit is sponsored by the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum, which opened May 1 on the SMU campus.

Washington’s document will be part of DeGolyer Library’s summer exhibit, “Hail to the Chief: American Presidential History in Word and Image,” July 14 - Oct. 4. The exhibit will include presidential political memorabilia such as campaign biographies, letters, posters, buttons, cartoons, inaugural medals, photographs and other artifacts, from George Washington to Barack Obama.

SMU Community Day

  What:
  • Colonial crafts and games for kids
  • Colonial craft demonstrations by artists from Dallas Heritage Village
  • Historical interpretation by costumed members of the Plano chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution
  • Performances by the Heritage Brass Band, a Dallas-based volunteer reenactment band.
  When: 9 a.m. to noon, July 20, 2013
  Where: Laura Bush Promenade, DeGolyer Library at Fondren Library Center, 6414 Robert S. Hyer Lane, SMU, Dallas. Free parking available off Airline Drive on the east side of the library.
  Cost: Free, visitors will receive coupon for 20 percent off admission to George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum, valid July 20 only.
  More Info: http://smu.edu/Washington 

George W. Bush Library and Museum Community Day

  What:
  • Presidential artifacts on display, from James Monroe to Ronald Reagan
  • Colonial arts and crafts, Mount Vernon SMART Board interactive games and puzzles
  • Video presentation of "The Constitution and Executive Power"
  When: 1 to 5 p.m., July 20, 2013
  Where: Classroom, George W. Bush Library and Museum, 2943 SMU Blvd.

Click here for parking information for Community Day and Hail to the Chief at DeGolyer Library.

    

SMU Campus Map