Town history says that when the call went out for men to respond to Lexington and Concord to fight in the Revolution, every able bodied man in Antrim save one responded to the call.
“We were a patriotic town then, and we’re a patriotic town now,” said Brian Beihl of Antrim.
On the Fourth of July, residents gathered on Jameson Street at the bandstand for its annual observances – patriotic songs by Yankee Doodle and the Dandies, a presentation of the first flags recognized by the nation by the Boy Scouts, and the reading of the Declaration of Independence.
The Dandies, made up of Margie Warner, Joan Gorga, Walker Boyle, Victor Rosansky and Frank Gorga, kept the crowd entertained with patriotic ditties such as “Grand Old Flag,” “This Land is Your Land” and of course, their namesake “Yankee Doodle Dandy.”
Following the Dandies, the Boy Scouts presented a color guard representing the colonial flag – the first flag of the United States, with its recognizable stripes, but with the less well-known British flag in the corner, and the “Betsy Ross” flag with the thirteen stars circled in the corner, along with a brief history of each.
Finally, the event was rounded off with a reading of the Declaration of Independence, which remains today as one of the foundations of America.
“This event reaches back into time and shares a spirit of patriotism in Antrim,” said Beihl. “I’ve been coming to it for years.”