Gov. Chris Sununu fires Lafayette Artillery Company cannon at celebration
Gov. Chris Sununu, Speaker of the House Sherman Packard, Senate President Pro Tempore James Gray, Virginia Drye from the Friends of Lafayette, the Lafayette Artillery Company and the Sons of the American Revolution pause at the conclusion of New Hampshire Lafayette Day on the State House lawn for a photo by the Lafayette Artillery Company’s 1844 six-pound brass cannon. —PHOTO BY KATHLEEN BAGLIO HUMPHREYS
Gov. Chris Sununu helps fire the Lafayette Artillery Company’s 1844 brass six-pound cannon during New Hampshire Lafayette Day at the State House in Concord. PHOTO BY KATHLEEN BAGLIO HUMPHREYS
| Published: 05-27-2024 8:01 AM |
New Hampshire Lafayette Day is celebrated on May 20, the anniversary of Gen. Marquis de Lafayette’s death in 1834. A wreath of red and white carnations was laid near the Lafayette Day plaque at the State House in remembrance.
New Hampshire and French dignitaries, residents and guests were invited to Concord the afternoon of May 20 for the New Hampshire Lafayette Day celebration, and the Lafayette Artillery Company of Lyndeborough was invited for the second time to participate. The first honor was the dedication of the Lafayette Day marker on May 20, 2022, when the company also fired the cannon.
The program started with the presentation of the colors by the New Hampshire Sons of the American Revolution, who also did a rifle salute. Steve Winnett sang the American and French national anthems, followed by “America the Beautiful.”
Welcoming remarks were by Alan Hoffman, president of American Friends of Lafayette. Gov. Chris Sununu read the New Hampshire Lafayette Day Proclamation. Speaker of the House Sherman Packard and Senate President Pro Tempore James Gray addressed the crowd, as well as a greeting from French Consul General Mustafa Soykurt. The theme was that Lafayette “was the Michael Jordan of his time.”
Virginia Drye from the Friends of Lafayette also spoke and was instrumental in organizing the event.
The New Hampshire Lafayette Day observance concluded with the Lafayette Artillery Company firing its 1844 brass six-pound cannon three times with the help of Sununu, Packard and Gray. Just before pulling the lanyard, Sununu joked, “This is a big gun for a small town; it must be bigger than the town.”
The chargers were made smaller than normal, as to not damage the historic building, but the boom was followed by a lot of cheering as the smoke cleared.
Afterward, guests were invited to Representatives Hall, where Virginia Drew, Packard and Drye unveiled a presentation about Lafayette’s farewell tour narrated by Laura Knoy. The podcast tells the story of Lafayette’s farewell tour with authentic local stories abut history, culture, legends, recreations and more. The stories play automatically using a phone’s GPS. For more, visit travelstorys.com/tours/lafayette-in-new-hampshire.
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New Hampshire has been celebrating Lafayette Day since 1955 with a proclamation from the governor, but in the last four years, the event has seen more pomp and circumstance with the approach of the bicentennial of Lafayette’s visits to New Hampshire and his farewell tour from 1824 to 1825.
Lafayette Artillery Company members that participated were Capt. Walter Holland, Pvt. Leo Trudeau, Pvt. Richard Herfurth, Pvt. Karen Holland, Pvt. Kathleen Humphreys and Pvt. Art Napolitano.
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