Athol residents to commemorate Declaration of Independence anniversary

ATHOL – A couple of weeks ago, North Quabbin Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Missy Eaton and her husband Dan were taking a walk at the Upper Common in Athol and spotted a sign containing a narrative regarding the Declaration of Independence.

The sign noted that Athol residents learned the colonies had declared independence from Great Britain when a copy of the declaration was read aloud from the steps of the Third Meetinghouse on July 18, two weeks after members of the Continental Congress began affixing their names to the document.

As a result, to celebrate the nation’s 250^th anniversary, the declaration will be read on the Upper Common the morning of July 18 at the bandstand on the Upper Common, which stands on the site once occupied by the meetinghouse.

The Declaration of Independence was adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, through which the 13 American colonies severed their political connections to Great Britain.

The Eatons, in addition to being Revolutionary War enthusiasts and reenactors, also belong to the Athol Historical Society.

“Missy saw the sign, looked at her phone and said, ‘That date, July 18, is a Saturday. We could do this exact same thing 250 years later,” said Dan Eaton. “I said, ‘I’m in.’ But this was all her idea.”

Dan said everyone asked by he or Missy to participate in the event responded with an enthusiastic “yes.” The reading will be done in such a way to recall each of the original colonies.

“We decided since there were 13 colonies, let’s divide it up into 13 separate sections.” he said. “We had an idea of all the people we wanted to ask and, so far, all of those people have said yes and are ready to go.”

Dan Eaton added that, in addition to 13 participants, another three people would be asked to stand by as alternates.

The Eatons appeared at the June 16 Selectboard meeting to get permission to use the common for the event. At the same time, they asked that each member of the board participate in reading from the founding document of the nation. Every member of the board, said Dan Eaton, has accepted the invitation.

He said no one will be asked to read any section of the document with which they feel uncomfortable due to the word use.

“Because of the verbiage of the declaration, let’s say someone said they had a hard time pronouncing the word ‘unalienable,’ we’re going to match them up so no one feels uncomfortable,” Dan Eaton said.

“Now, this is just a reading,” Missy Eaton added. “There are no speeches….It’s strictly short and sweet; no donuts, no cider or coffee.

“The only preamble you might see is the letter sent to the Commonwealth asking that the declaration be read to the public,” Dan Eaton added. “We may pare that down to make it a little bit more palatable, and we’ll have a reader for that also.”

The Eatons said that hearing the Declaration of Independence read aloud produces a unique impact upon the listener.

“You can read it on paper or in a textbook, but it really is meant to be read aloud,” Missy said.

Dan Eaton said there was a reason behind limiting the event solely to a reading of the declaration.

“We just want to let the words of the declaration hang in mid-air,” he said. “This was the turning point in our country where we said we’re serious, we’re done negotiating….And that’s how we’ll end it; just how they ended it.”

The Eatons said the event will begin promptly at 10:05 in the morning.

“Just bring yourselves,” said Dan. “It takes probably 12 or 15 minutes to read it….It’s going to be a short, simple and very solemn event.”