SAUGUS — The town will be celebrating the 250th anniversary of the United States on the Fourth of July with a gathering at the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site.
The 250th Celebration Committee announced that the celebration will run from noon to 4 p.m. and will include a historical recap of Saugus’s role in the Revolutionary War and the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Multiple historical figures will appear during the event, including Parson Joseph Roby, his wife Rachel Roby, and George Washington.
Roby was an ordained minister who was educated at Harvard and served as parson for the Third Parish Church in Saugus for 51 years, starting in 1750.
Roby was also involved in the fight for freedom, meeting with men from England who were seeking independence. Throughout his years, he became known as “fightin’ Parson” and would stand at his pulpit with a Bible and a musket.
Roby marched with 62 men from the Third Parish to Newhall’s tavern before heading to Lexington to fight. Four days after the Battles of Lexington and Concord, Roby was chosen to be part of a Committee of Safety during a Lynn Town Meeting.
Today, the Saugus chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution is named after him.
The Committee hopes the event will honor all those who fought for freedom.
In an announcement, Committee member Ellen LeClair said one of the main foods to be served at the event will be baked beans.
“It was a staple food of the colonists and also of the American Revolutionary soldiers,” LeClair said.
She continued that colonists would make their baked beans on Saturday nights, as they couldn’t on Sundays for religious reasons.
“We’ll have other refreshments, too, like molasses cookies and gingersnap cookies,” she said.
Board of Selectmen Chair Debra Panetta said the event would be filled with games and contests.
Committee member Jean Swanson said that they will be sponsoring a contest for elementary students using the topic “What freedom means to me” for an essay. Children in kindergarten and first grade will also have a contest where they will draw pictures of what freedom means to them. The winner will be announced at the event.
“We’re also going to have a coloring book, which talks a lot about the history of Saugus because as Saugonians we are very proud of our Sachem heritage. We’re going to have a lot of fun-filled games for the children, which include sack races, three-legged races, and cornhole,” Panetta said.
