For Immediate Release
September 2, 2006

Massachusett's Blackstone River Valley Comes Alive with Twenty-one Special Events for 2006 Heritage Homecoming

BLACKSTONE VALLEY - The 21st edition of Blackstone Valley's Heritage Homecoming 2006 will feature twenty-one special events held over two consecutive weekends, September 23rd to 24th and September 30th to October 1st. Heritage Homecoming celebrates the eleven historic Blackstone River Valley communities of Massachusetts and features specially designated heritage tourism and cultural events.

In addition to long standing events such as Sutton's Waters Farm Days, Hopedale's Day In The Park, the Harvest Fair and Apple Pie Festival in Grafton, and the Civil War Encampment and battle reenactment at River Bend Farm in Uxbridge, this year features a new open house event at Daniels Farm Homestead in Blackstone. Open to the public in 2005, Daniel's Farm joins us in celebrating Heritage Homecoming for the very first time. The venerable old farm house and several of the outbuildings of the farmstead, including the historic cider mill, will all be open from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM for tours on Saturday, September 30th and Sunday, October 1st. Included will be exhibits of yesteryear, a sampling of live farm animals, and hand spinning on a genuine antique wheel.

Once again a feature event of Heritage Homecoming will be the Reverend William Blackstone Ecumenical Breakfast. Grafton will host the breakfast on Friday, September 29th at the St. James Church hall located at 89 Main Street in South Grafton. The breakfast begins at 8:30 AM. Tickets are $6.00 per person and can be reserved by calling Blackstone Valley Heritage Homecoming Chairman Spaulding Aldrich at 508-234-5043. A limited number of tickets will be sold at the door on the day of the event. The breakfast is sponsored by the Blackstone Valley Heritage Homecoming Committee with the generous support of National Grid.

National Park Service Ranger Chuck Arning of the John H. Chafee Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor will talk about the circa 1828-1848 Blackstone Canal and recent initiatives to uncover and preserve the canal in South Grafton and throughout the Blackstone Valley.

Additional information on 2006 Blackstone Valley Heritage Homecoming events can be found at the Heritage Homecoming Committees website:

http://www.bv-heritage-homecoming.org

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Blackstone Valley Heritage Homecoming 2006 Schedule of Events

Blackstone Valley Heritage Homecoming 2006 will be held over two consecutive weekends, September 23rd to 24th and September 30th to October 1st. Heritage Homecoming celebrates the eleven historic Blackstone River Valley communities of Massachusetts and features specially designated tourism and cultural events. Additional information on 2006 Blackstone Valley Heritage Homecoming events can be found at the Heritage Homecoming Committees website:

http://www.bv-heritage-homecoming.org

The 2006 Heritage Homecoming Schedule of Events may also be downloaded directly from the website at:

http://www.bv-heritage-homecoming.org/events2006.htm

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About the Chamber

The Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce serves the Blackstone River Valley's eleven member towns in Massachusetts: Blackstone, Douglas, Grafton, Hopedale, Mendon, Millbury, Millville, Northbridge, Sutton, Upton, and Uxbridge. The mission of the chamber is to promote the economic vitality of the Blackstone Valley, meet the needs of the Chamber's business members, while providing leadership on issues which impact the economy and quality of life in the Valley.