Marshall County's America 250

06/01/2026

Declaration Signer History Nugget #52 is about William Williams, who was born in Lebanon, Connecticut April 9, 1731. He was a merchant and pastor and fought in the French and Indian War. Williams never owned slaves, feeling it was morally wrong. In July, 1774 he anonymously published an satirical address “To the King” from “America”: “We don’t complain that your father made our yoke heavy and afflicted us with grievous service,” which refers to an incident in the Bible. William Williams passed away in Lebanon at the age of 80 on August 2, 1811. (This information is abstracted from the National Archives Signers of the Declaration of Independence and wikipedia.)

05/26/2026

Declaration Signer History Nugget #51 is about William Whipple, Jr., who was born in Kittery, Massachusetts (now Maine) January 14, 1731. He was a ship captain and a merchant. As a brigadier general Whipple participated in the Battles of Saratoga, Bemis Heights, Bennington and Rhode Island. Believing that no man could fight for freedom and hold another in bo***ge, he freed his slave. William Whipple, Jr. passed away in New Hampshire at the age 54 on November 28, 1785. (This information is abstracted from the National Archives Signers of the Declaration of Independence and wikipedia.)

05/22/2026

Marshall County History Nugget #21
Flowing Well, Magnetic Park, Plymouth, Indiana


Magnetic Park gets its name from its flowing well of magnetic water. The well was driven in 1875 by Bailey & Capron, owners of the Plymouth Water Mills. The water was highly charged with magnetism. The volume of water discharged was enormous, 500 gallons per minute, or 30,000 gallons per hour, and 720 gallons a day. A popular pastime was to suspend a metallic object into the well and let it remain for several hours. Due to the unique properties of the water, the object would become magnetized.

05/19/2026

CALL FOR ART • America the Beautiful

In celebration of Marshall County's America 250 the Heartland Art Center and SoVan Media invites artists and community members of all ages to participate in America the Beautiful - a community art exhibition exploring what America means through creativity and artistic expression.

From small towns and city streets to family traditions, nature, music, history, agriculture, freedom, culture, and everyday moments, we invite thoughtful and creative interpretations celebrating the beauty and spirit of America.

🎨 All ages welcome
🖌 All artistic mediums welcome
⭐ Enter 1 artwork FREE
⭐ Additional entries accepted for a small fee

The exhibition opens June 30 at the historic Historic Downtown Fire Station in downtown Plymouth, the oldest standing fire station in the State of Indiana, offering a meaningful place to celebrate both creativity and history.

Depending on participation, additional downtown Plymouth locations may also feature artwork from the exhibition.

📅 Submission Deadline: Saturday, June 20
📦 Artwork Drop Off: June 23–27
🎉 Reception Celebration during the 11th Annual ARTS in the Street Festival on Saturday, July 25th

We can’t wait to see how our community interprets America the Beautiful!

📍 View the prospectus and submission details here: https://heartlandartgallery.com/america-the-beautiful-community-exhibition/

05/18/2026

Declaration Signer History Nugget #50 is about George Walton, who was born in Cumberland County, Virginia about 1749. He was a lawyer. He did not own slaves and advocated against slavery. Walton served as colonel of the First Georgia Regiment of Militia. During the Battle of Savannah he was hit in the thigh by a musket ball that threw him from his horse. Captured by the British, he was sent to Sunbury Prison. Walton’s brother John signed the Articles of Confederation but not the Declaration of Independence. George Walton passed away in Augusta, Georgia aged about 54 on February 2, 1804. (This information is abstracted from the National Archives Signers of the Declaration of Independence and wikipedia.)

05/15/2026

Marshall County's America 250 Committee is planning a 4th of July Parade on Saturday, July 4th at 11:30 AM starting at the north edge of the Oakhill Cemetery and processing down Michigan Street towards River Park Square. We would love to have representation from your businesses and/or organization throughout Marshall County in our parade! In anticipation of this event, we have prepared a form for float/parade entries for your consideration.

Filling out this intent form will help us to gather information on how many entries we will have for this planned parade. Our hope is to get as many patriotic themed floats as we can to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence!

Please fill out this form if you are interested in participating in our 4th of July parade. We look forward to hearing from you and will contact you back when we have received your submission with further information pertaining to the event.

Link to Form:

Please fill out this form to be considered for our 4th of July Parade through downtown Plymouth! We are so excited to be celebrating the 250th Anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in our county! The parade will begin at 11am on Saturday, July 4th at the north entrance of New...

05/14/2026

05/11/2026

Declaration Signer History Nugget #49 is about Matthew Thornton, who was born in Clare County, Ireland March 3, 1714, immigrating with his family when he was 3. He was a physician. Thornton served as surgeon for the New Hampshire militia against Fortress Louisbourg in 1745. Elected to Continental Congress late, he did not sign the Declaration of Independence until November, 1776. Later Thornton owned a ferry and was a judge. Matthew Thornton passed away in Newburyport, Massachusetts at the age of 89 on June 24, 1803. (This information is abstracted from the National Archives Signers of the Declaration of Independence and wikipedia.)

05/04/2026

Declaration Signer History Nugget #48 is about George Taylor, who was born in Ireland about 1716. He was an ironmaster. He emigrated at age 20, landing in Philadelphia in 1736. To pay for his passage Taylor was indentured to an ironmaster, starting as a laborer, and rising through the ranks. In 1776 five of Pennsylvania’s delegates to the Continental Congress were Loyalists, and were forced to resign. Taylor as a replacement delegate signed the Declaration of Independence, the only signer who had been indentured. George Taylor passed away in Easton, Pennsylvania aged about 64 on February 24, 1781. (This information is abstracted from the National Archives Signers of the Declaration of Independence and wikipedia.)

04/29/2026

In case you weren’t able to attend Marshall County’s America 250 Cemetery Walk, here is the video of the event!

1 like. "Oak Hill Cemetery Walk: A Historical Reenactment"