CRESWELL – Summer is just around the corner, flowers and trees are blooming, and cool breezes off Lake Phelps stave off the stifling heat. The eighth annual Days Gone By living history event at Somerset Place State Historic Site presents the perfect opportunity to enjoy the beautiful weather.

Take a step back in time to the 1800s Saturday, June 9, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Enjoy a variety of historical demonstrations that depict life on what was once the third largest plantation in North Carolina. Watch as an authentic blacksmith demonstrates his craft. Transport yourself into the cypress swamps that once dominated the landscape as a shingle maker carves his wares. A leatherworker will work on hides while a costumed doctor will showcase 19th century medicine as practiced in the plantation hospital.

Other activities include period music and storytelling. Costumed interpreters will host period crafts and games for adults and children of all ages. A $2.15 fee is applicable per craft. Interpreters will also  conduct guided tours of the plantation. Vendors will be selling food, crafts and artwork as well.

Somerset Place is a representative state historic site offering a comprehensive view of 19th century life on a large North Carolina plantation. The plantation once encompassed more than 100,000 acres. Over its 80-year history, more than 861 enslaved African Americans lived and worked at Somerset.

For additional information, please call (252) 797-4560. Somerset Place is located at 2572 Lake Shore Road, Creswell. It is administered by the Division of State Historic Sites in the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.