The Southampton County Historical Society will hold its 21st annual Heritage Day on Sept. 13, from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Heritage Village/Agriculture and Forestry Museum at 26315 Heritage Lane in Courtland.

Admission will be $4 for adults and $1 for school-aged children.

Heritage Day is a popular event that promises to provide a wholesome and fun outing for the whole family. Visitors will learn how folks made the items in their homes and on the farm, and there will be activities and presentations for all ages to enjoy.

Museum equipment such as the sawmill, grist mill and printing presses will run throughout the day. Crafters from Virginia and North Carolina, many in period costumes, will demonstrate and sell old-fashioned crafts. Lunch will be for sale on the grounds — barbecue, hot dogs, snacks, apple and sweet potato jacks, water and soft drinks.

Always a popular attraction, the museum’s grist mill will be grinding fine cornmeal, which will be available for a donation. Samples of hot cornbread made from that meal will be given away throughout the day. Volunteers will demonstrate the old technique of typesetting on the museum’s two old printing presses.

Antique cars and tractors will be on display. In addition, the 1920s ground sawmill and planing mill will operate several times during the day. The blacksmith shop, too, will be open, with blacksmiths at work.

Among the crafts being demonstrated and for sale, visitors will find painted gourds, baskets, handmade jewelry, sewing, quilting, tole painting, hair bows, candles, floral arrangements, paintings, painted rock paperweights, as well as various types of needlework and wood work.

Artisans from the Nottoway Indian Tribe of Virginia will blend contemporary and traditional art through beadwork, flute making, woodcarving, quilting and pottery making. Other special demonstrations include woodcarving, whittling, spinning wool, rug making, crocheting and knitting. Some of the old crafts to see are lye soap making, butter making, hominy making, cracklings and lard rendering.

Civil War re-enactors will set up camp throughout the day and will also teach rope making.

A local trapper will demonstrate how to handle and tan fur.

Rick Francis and Dr. Will Dunstan will be at the Rebecca Vaughan House, on site, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to answer questions about Nat Turner and the 1831 Southampton slave insurrection.

String music by Potecasi Creek String Band from Murfreesboro can be heard resonating around the grounds. Shiloh Grass, a local bluegrass band, will entertain during the day. The little country church on the site will feature an old-fashioned hymn sing. Don Spence, “hillbilly poet,” will recite poems about local history. Storytelling will take place in the one-room school at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

A petting zoo will feature farm animals, and baby chicks will be hatching Sept. 13. Smokey the Bear will visit, and there will be hay rides, face painting, balloon animals, wheelbarrow rides and a hen house full of chickens. Also, young folks can learn the art of milking a cow by practicing on “Mattie,” a replica “cow.”

Heritage Village, located onsite, includes a country store, one-room school, country dwelling, doctor’s office, smokehouse, old post office and two outhouses, among other buildings. A newly restored barber shop will be open with family members telling stories about its history.

The Museum of Southampton History, close by at 22541 Linden St., will feature four special exhibits, including six scale models of local homes and historic buildings built by E.B. Gayle. The trains of Southampton features a working train representing downtown Courtland in the 1950s and includes photos of depots, trains and more. The newest display is a prehistory exhibit, which displays prehistoric shells, sharks’ teeth and whale vertebrae from when Southampton County was part of the ocean floor. The popular Military Room highlights the service of local soldiers in all wars through uniforms, photos, memorabilia and weaponry.