Catawba, Lincoln County Historical Associations to host Liberty Ball for America 250
By James Kmosko
The Historical Associations of Catawba and Lincoln counties will host the Liberty Ball to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States.
The ball will take place on June 27th at the Crowe Mansion, an event and wedding venue located on NC-150 in Lincoln County, and will benefit the two historical associations.
Doors will open at 7 PM for general admission ticket holders. The event will end at 11 PM.
Sponsors and donors will have a separate reception at 6 PM with a “special signature cocktail to commemorate the 250th.“
The ball will feature costumed reenactors and several events and showcases, including live historical music and dancing.
“We’re going to have piccolo players that will be doing some patriotic music at the beginning,” said Susan Holbrook, Executive Director of the Historical Association of Catawba County. “Then, of course, we’ll have dancing. We are going to have a DJ for later on in the evening.”
The ball will also provide a dinner featuring historical food options and a cash bar.
“We’ll have a wonderful amount of food,” Susan said. “The menu is incredible. [We’ll have historic] hors d’oeuvres and kind of a modern twist on colonial style foods, [on] what they would have had [in 1776].”
Other events at the ball include a silent auction, educational programming, display of historical items including an authentic red coat, and a wine pool.
“We’re accepting donations of bottles of wine that are of a $20 value or more because we’re doing a wine pool,” said Alyssa Miller, Director of Education for the Historical Association of Catawba County. “If they just have a bottle of wine that is at least $20 sitting on top of their fridge, they just are not going to drink it. We’ll take it. [If] they want to donate it, we’ll take it. So there’s lots of ways to support these two organizations.”
In the tradition of colonial era public proclamations, Robert Ryals, a Charlotte-based historian, will read aloud from the Halifax Resolves. The Halifax Resolves were passed unanimously in April 1776 by the North Carolina Provincial Congress. The North Carolina Sons of the American Revolution describe the resolution as, “the first official act by any of the thirteen colonies calling for independence from Great Britain.”
“He is just incredible,” Alyssa said. “He’s very theatrical. He does a good job. It’s going to be exciting.”
The event will double as an award ceremony for historical preservation.
“We’re gonna do some historical preservation awards for both Lincoln County and Catawba County,” Susan said. “Either organizations or individuals. That’s going to be a lot of fun for me. That’s the most important part of the night, because we love those folks who work with us to preserve our history and then share it, because without it we have nothing to learn from.”
There is no specific dress code for the ball, but historical dress is encouraged.
“We’re encouraging everyone to come dressed in colonial costumes,” Susan said. “We’d love to have the women come in their colonial ball gowns and the gentlemen come in their patriotic military uniforms, but it’s anything really. There’ll be folks in black tie and there’ll be folks in costume, or cocktail dresses and things like that. Church clothes are fine, but we just want people to come and celebrate with us to enjoy the evening.”
The event venue, the Crowe Mansion, was constructed over four years starting in 1970. The mansion was commissioned by fashion designer Alda Crow and her husband, to be used as an event venue. Architect Richard Gillespie designed the house “to unique specifications of an old looking new home, patterned after The Carter’s Grove Plantation near Williamsburg,” according to the venue’s website.
“The Crowe Mansion is beautiful and it is styled after the Williamsburg palaces and homes and so it’s very fitting for this type of celebration,” Susan said. “It’ll be beautifully decorated and the outside has that gorgeous staircase, so we’ll be able to offer photo opportunities. It’s a fairly good replica of what they had in the late 1700s. They’ve just been wonderful to work with and we’re excited to partner with that organization as well.”
Few historic mansions exist from the revolutionary era in Catawba and Lincoln counties. Historians refer to western North Carolina in this era as the “Backcounty,” a sparsely populated and underrepresented area. A “Liberty Ball” in this area would have been unlikely during the revolution.
“There was not wealth in this area because it was mostly the frontier still,” Alyssa said. “The people that were in this area were farmers, fur trappers, and traders, very agricultural people. [This type of ball would be more likely near] Wilmington or New Bern. Around here, they definitely would have had gatherings, but it would have been probably pretty informal. Most people wouldn’t have owned clothing nice enough to go to something like [this] at the time.”
General admission tickets for the event cost $125, or $85 for teachers and “young professionals.” Sponsorship options range from $1,000 to $10,000. All proceeds from the event will benefit the two historical associations, both of which are 501(c)(3) charitable organizations.
“It is a fundraising event so that both counties can continue to bring the programming at no charge or very little charge,” Susan said. “All of the proceeds and all of the donations that we have received go to allowing us to continue our programming.”
Susan says she expects the event to be a success.
“I think we’ve had a great response as far as folks buying tables,” Susan said. “We’ve sold several of those that we have a lot of individual tickets that are going. Our goal is to have 240 folks there and so I think we’re going to get pretty close to that. Tickets are limited, so get your tickets now.”
Catawba and Lincoln counties have been planning the Liberty Ball and other America 250 events since 2023.
“Our organization, as well as Lincolnton, we’ve been planning for America 250 for years,” Susan said. “Each county had to get a declaration from their counties to become designated as an America 250 county and [become] part of the program. Of course, the revolution didn’t end [in] one day. July 4th [is] not the only part of the American Revolution. And in this area, it wasn’t until the late 1770s, 1780 that we actually took part in the skirmishes.”
Other Catawba County America 250 programming includes historical presentations, opportunities to throw tea into a recreation of Boston Harbor, and American history trivia at 3 Little Birds wineshop in Newton.
To learn more about Catawba or Lincoln County America 250 programming, visit their websites at catawbahistory.org and lincolncountyhistory.com.