Writing most of the scripts for the August Court Days trials, Hillsboro area resident John Sawyer finds one cliché to be true.
"I want to teach the public about the nature of law in those days. The more things change, the more they stay the same," said Sawyer, an attorney with the Federal government and a member of the Living History Foundation. He is one of more than 200 reenactors planning to participate in the 27th annual Colonial-era street fair Aug. 16-17 in downtown Leesburg.
The reenactors will act out events from the August court session when a traveling judge stopped in Leesburg to hear court cases involving civil disputes, minor criminal offenses and administrative matters. The judges passed sentences and placed the guilty in stocks or in the local jail.
Each year, the reenactors participate in mock trials to demonstrate how the trials were conducted in the 18th century, convening in the county’s old courthouse building. Sawyer took up writing the scripts about nine years ago, researching court cases and statutes from the late 1700s and developing plays based on his findings. Last year, he wrote about growth issues and this year decided on transportation issues, a focus that is not meant to be political, he said.
"I thought it was particularly interesting that in the 1700s, they were fighting about transportation in Loudoun County," said Vicky Bendure, spokesperson for the event.
SAWYER WROTE a three-act play for the trials this year, using two court cases as his basis and assigning himself as the judge for Saturday’s performances and an alternate to perform on Sunday. One of the court cases focuses on the county’s petitioning the governing council to operate a second ferryboat on the Potomac River.
"Some of the citizens were up in arms, thinking that if there is another ferry, there is going to be more congestion. It’s going to draw more traffic," Bendure said, adding, "It’s all germane to a lot of the arguments going on now about a second Potomac crossing."
The second court case involves a vehicle theft with the defendant convicted of riding a horse instead of for stealing it. "The jury thought the theft was not a big deal, but riding it was," Bendure said.
At the beginning of the trial, Sawyer as senior judge will pick out three junior justices from the audience since he will lack a quorum. "We just have a good time," he said. "The purpose is to get the public involved in the case. The case is written so that the justices get to learn the law, help make the decisions and move the case along."
While the mock trials are underway, reenactors from the Living History Foundation and another four reenacting groups will socialize, gossip and discuss political and economic events in the colonies while they wait to find out who is on trial, just as the Colonialists did in the late 1700s. The August court session was viewed as a gathering time, though the trials were held on a monthly basis.
Other reenactors will reenact two groups of militia from Maryland, frontiersmen from the valley and Scottish Army troops representing the King of England, some of them camping out on the courthouse lawns. They will demonstrate English country dancing, provide street performances and demonstrate crafts, such as pottery, weaving, painting and making furniture.
"It’s just so unique. It’s at the actual site where the history took place, and it involves a street festival that’s a lot of fun," Bendure said. "It’s a great family event, and it’s educational."
IN ADDITION to the reenactments, the August Court Days event will include:
* Live folk and country music performances throughout the day.
* Approximately 75 vendors selling food and crafts at booths and on the streets.
* Hands-on learning opportunities at the Colonial Children’s Fair and Games about spinning, weaving, calligraphy, rope making and other crafts, along with puppet shows.
An average of 15,000 to 20,000 people attend the event each year, a number that varies depending on the weather. The Loudoun Restoration and Preservation Society will use funds raised from the event to help restore buildings and sites in the county through grants.
"We’re saving historical buildings, that’s why we want it to continue," said Leesburg resident Catherine Boyd, who helped found the event and last year stepped down from her role as board president. She now is serving as director emeritus.
"She has been the queen of August Court Days every year," Bendure said about the 94-year-old woman. "This is the first year that she has not been involved in doing every little thing, because we’re worried about her health-wise. We do expect her out on the streets on August Court Days."