IN COUNTRY

Breakfast with Town Criers

By david roffman

MAY 2008

Historic Annapolis Foundation will host a “Family Breakfast with the Towne Criers” on Saturday, May 3, in which participants in the 2008 National Towne Crier Competition will teach children how to spread the news by bell and proclamation. The continental breakfast and festivities take place from 8:30 to 10:00 a.m. on the William Paca Garden Terrace, 186 Prince George Street in Annapolis. Tickets are $7 per adult and $5 per child. Advance reservations are required and can be made online at the Historic Annapolis Foundation website, www.annapolis.org, or by calling 410-267-8146.

“Family Breakfast with the Towne Criers” is an opportunity to share a continental style breakfast with some of the nation’s finest town criers. Centuries before live broadcast and the Internet, breaking news was distributed by criers. Now children will get a chance to test their crying skills with town criers who keep the tradition alive.

Frederick Taylor, official Annapolis Towne Crier and host of the 2008 Towne Crier Competition said, “I think the young, the young at heart, and people of all ages are really going to appreciate the differences in each crier’s attire as well as, of course, their individual proclamations.” Taylor will be present to give the opening cry at the breakfast and offer tips to first-time criers. Come ring the bell, choose your proclamation and learn from the best!

The Family Breakfast precedes the 2008 Towne Crier Competition held at Annapolis’s City Dock at 12:30 p.m. as part of the Maryland Maritime Heritage Festival celebrations. The Maryland Maritime Heritage Festival is designed to celebrate the pivotal role of maritime activity in the development of Maryland. For more information about the festival and a list of events, visit http://www.mdmhf.org

Since 1952 Historic Annapolis Foundation has preserved the distinctive character of Maryland’s capital city through public advocacy and guidelines, purchase and renovation, original research, and educational programs. The Foundation manages historic Annapolis properties including the St. Clair Wright Center, William Paca House and Garden, Shiplap House, Museum Store, Waterfront Warehouse, and The Barracks. For more information, go to www.annapolis.org.