Last weekend, Kingston commemorated 1777’s Burning of Kingston, an event made possible by an enthusiastic community and dedicated group of historical reenactors.

On Oct. 16, 1777, the British sent forces to raid the Hudson Valley, attacking and burning Kingston to the ground. Today, the Burning of Kingston is a weekend-long event with tours of Kingston’s historical places and talks about life in colonial times, such as the role of Native Americans, queer folk and Black Americans during the Revolutionary War.

Most anticipated, however, were re-enactments of the British and Continental encampments and (ahistorical) battles on the streets. Every aspect of colonial life — from the troops to Patriots and Tories to regular people — was found during the day. One vendor acted as a doctor, selling essential oils that were used as medicine. Another taught colonial writing, complete with a quill and chalkboard. A woman cooked bacon over a stove on a firebox. This was more than just people dressed in costumes for the day, but an extensive community dedicated to historical re-enactment and interpretation.

Michelle Numssen came from Saugerties with the Butler’s Rangers, a historical re-enactment group. “We have people coming from anywhere from minutes away to maybe two and a half, three hours away to participate in this,” she said.

Her group wore green coats, which were most commonly donned by Loyalists along with some cavalry. Numssen dressed as a German Palatine adopted into the Seneca tribe with her husband, who is of Seneca and Esopus heritage. The British marched in their classic red coats while setting up a cannon and singing pro-England songs; the colonists would arrive later to attempt to fend off the invasion. According to Numssen, putting together historical costumes is an elaborate process, as many pieces aren’t purchased in stores but are handmade, or traded with the community.

“What brought me in personally is my husband always had an involvement through his actual Native heritage … my son had a very strong interest in history and historic places,” Numssen said. “So we would always take camping trips [to] Fort Ticonderoga, Saratoga. We started realizing that we knew people in period clothing, and we could just camp and dress that way. We spend hard-earned money on this. We never get paid for these things. It's a passion.”

The battle began at 3 p.m. Saturday in Uptown, as the crowd was cleared to the sidewalk so that the British could safely fire the cannon. The battle would continue with the British and colonial forces taking turns firing muskets until the British “won” and the rebels retreated. Down came the Stars and Stripes and up went the Union Jack, while the Redcoats’ commander announced that the city would be burned and the mayor would be arrested.

The burning drew dedicated re-enactors and an enthusiastic crowd that often traded jeers, humorous quips and Revolutionary-era slogans. Some reenactors played music, and Numssen pointed out an older member of the group mentoring younger members.

“It’s part of that community too,” Numssen says, “and most of it is around not necessarily for our own enjoyment in putting on a costume, but to educate, so that anyone can ask questions … you can have pockets of solid re-enacting communities and history supporting communities and that is what we came out here to support.”