Waiting for Lafayette
Three presidents will discuss their friendships with General Lafayette in special program on Thursday evening.
By Adele Uphaus
MANAGING EDITOR AND CORRESPONDENT
Lafayette counted at least four U.S. presidents among his personal friends, and his 1824 tour of the country gave him an opportunity to rekindle those friendships.
In a free public program on Thursday, three of those former presidents will talk about their personal relationships with the celebrated French general, some of which were formed decades earlier during their shared service in the American Revolutionary War.
“Waiting for Lafayette,” which will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 3, at the Central Rappahannock Regional Library’s downtown Fredericksburg branch, will feature Thomas Jefferson (Bill Barker), James Madison (John Douglass Hall), and James Monroe (Jay Harrison).
Fredericksburg has been commemorating the bicentennial of Lafayette’s 1824 tour with a series of public events leading up to the weekend of November 23, just a few days from the actual date of his arrival in the city.
Events planned for that weekend are based on a pamphlet published by Rufus Merchant, publisher of the Daily Star newspaper, that recounted Lafayette’s three-day visit in detail.
The full schedule of events, which are free unless otherwise noted, is here. Tickets to The Lafayette Ball, which takes place on Saturday, November 23 from 6 to 9 p.m., can be purchased here.
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