By CHERYL JENSEN

The Progress

July 4, 2026, will mark the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
To celebrate, the Virgin Valley Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) hosted a ribbon cutting at a new display at the Virgin Valley Heritage Museum. Mayor Jesse Whipple had the honors of cutting the red ribbon along with Leigh Rossner, regent of the DAR Virgin Valley Chapter. Other city officials were also there on Thursday, Dec. 19.

The museum display features a Continental soldier and a British soldier dressed in military uniforms of the period. Information is shown comparing the two armies: the Continental army had to provide their own clothes and some soldiers lacked shoes, wrapping their feet in rags. They knew the territory they were fighting in well. On the other hand, the British were well- trained and clothed, but they were unfamiliar with guerilla warfare or the geography of the colonies.

Another poster displays the ancestors of local DAR members, including the names and ranks of the soldiers. Dolls dressed in colonial outfits are on display along with a small cannon.

Jeffery J. McKenna loaned the museum his handmade replica of a flintlock rifle, nicknamed Brown Bess. The barrel was cast from lead-free metals. It’s 88 percent bismuth and 12 percent tin.

Three 685-caliber round balls are on display. They would have been loaded in pre-formed paper-rolled cartridges and fired from the musket. This is the type of weapon that killed Dr. Warren in the battle of Bunker Hill. McKenna is the author of “Saving Dr. Warren: A True Patriot,” a historical novel about the Revolutionary War written to appeal to both middle school students and adults.

The museum is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 pm. The local chapter of DAR was given a $500 grant to promote the remembrance of the events of the Revolution and other events will follow.