Organizers of the State of Dade Heritage Festival, coming up May 21 and 22, to celebrate the 65th anniversary of Dade County’s return to the Union, have announced the first of many entertainers for the weekend festival. The 8th Regiment Band, Georgia Volunteer Infantry, out of Rome, Ga., will be performing grand old American music with original mid-nineteenth century instruments in full heritage uniforms.
The 8th Regiment Band is the modern-day counterpart of the Band of the Eighth Regiment, Georgia Volunteer Infantry, who men served from 1st Manassas in 1861 to Appomattox in 1865 and prides themselves in being “a living museum of nineteenth century emotions.”
It was decided to recreate this particular band when research revealed that it was perhaps the largest Georgia band as well as the first to go to the Army of Northern Virginia. The “new” 8th Regiment was made up in 1986 and has since been featured in re-enactments of the battles of Gettysburg, Shiloh, Murfreesboro, Wilderness and Spotsylvania, Kennesaw Mountain, Atlanta, Franklin, Olustee, Resaca and many others.
The 8th Regimental Band is scheduled to perform as part of the State of Dade Heritage Festival on Friday evening, May 21, for two shows.
The State of Dade Heritage Festival continues to grow and will be announcing more entertainment and activity information as the event draws closer. The festival will provide entertainment for all ages and musical taste. Festival organizers are still seeking food vendors, arts and crafts vendors, civic organizations and volunteers that would like to be part of the historic event. Follow the Heritage Festival on Facebook and Twitter at State of Dade Heritage Festival.
Contact festival organizers via email at stateofdadeheritagefestival@yahoo.com or call the Dade County Chamber of Commerce at 706 657-4488 for more information about the event or participation.