Celebrate 'Northampton County History Day' on Sunday

Want to know more about the history of Northampton County -- including the Nazareth area? If you do, this Sunday will be a prime time to learn.

That's because -- in addition to being the anniversary of the county's 1752 incorporation -- Sunday, March 11 has been declared "Northampton County History Day" at the in Easton.

The celebration is being sponsored by "Passport to History," which is "an alliance of the county's historical societies and organizations," Northampton County Historical & Genealogical Society executive director Barbara Kowitz said in a press release about the event.

As part of the passport program, individuals will be offered free "passports" that include information about the hours of operation and overviews of more than 20 participating historical sites in the county, along with directions to them.

Each passport can be stamped when its holder visits one of the sites, which chair of the Passport program David Vilcek called "a wonderfully fun way for families to learn the history of their own geographical region."

At the conclusion of the year-long Passport program, awards will be presented to "well-traveled" visitors at Northampton County History Day 2013.

The Moravian Historical Society and Jacobsburg Historical Society are both participating. Nazareth area sites that are part of the Passport program are the Pennsylvania Longrifle Museum and the at the , and the and Gray Cottage.

A complete list of participating historic sites is available online on the Sigal Museum website.

Northampton County History Day will be celebrated at the Sigal Museum from 2 to 4 p.m., with free admission and refreshments served in honor of the county's birthday.

Local historian and author Frank Whelan will give a talk on Northampton County history at 2:30 p.m. and re-enactors from will also be on hand at the museum.