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Southborough tricentennial committee outlines programming: historic talks, walking tours, drone show, graveyard tour and community festival
Summary
Committee members described plans for history presentations, a walking tour, a drone show/New Year's event, graveyard tours, oral histories, hayrides and a community music festival while discussing venues, sponsorship and scheduling for 2026—1027.
The Town of Southborough Tricentennial Committee spent much of its Dec. 10 meeting shaping programming for the town's 300th anniversary year. Members discussed a slate of events that includes historical presentations and walking tours, a drone show timed for New Year's, evening graveyard tours, oral-history interviews with students volunteering as interviewers, hayrides and a community barbecue and music festival.
Debbie Costain (who introduced herself as a Southborough resident and longtime member of the Southborough Open Land Foundation) offered a 45-minute PowerPoint presentation concept about the Burnett/Garfield House, and the committee discussed scheduling the talk for early 2027. Costain described the house's local links and the Burnett family's civic contributions, and she proposed a walking tour that would begin near the reservoir to highlight surviving farm-related buildings in the area.
The committee heard a working-group report about possible collaboration with Saint Mark's (presentation space for 400 people, a theater, maker spaces and student service-learning opportunities) for family-friendly programs such as story times and history talks. Members discussed logistics for projecting slides and ensuring compatibility with venue AV systems.
Planning for a major public spectacle is underway: committee members discussed commissioning a professional drone show to mark the first night of the tricentennial period, with Jan. 1, 2027 (rather than Dec. 31) identified as a preferred date to maximize attendance and vendor availability. The discussion covered vendor lead times, sponsor funding needs, possible locations (close to central town vs. Trottier Fields), a 15-20 minute show length, and weather or wind contingency dates.
Other working groups reported: the graveyard tour team is recruiting actors and coordinating costume support from Scribe Theater, and the oral-history team is scheduling interviews with town residents and exploring student volunteer interviewers. The committee also discussed hayride options (horse-drawn hay wagons from a Tewksbury vendor that will travel on paved roads), safety and potential to charge riders. Funding was a recurring theme: the committee reviewed current bridal fundraiser proceeds and sponsorship tiers to help underwrite programming.
What happens next: staff and volunteers will continue to refine venue arrangements, secure sponsors for marquee events (drone show, music festival) and finalize dates. The committee set its next meeting for Jan. 21, 2026 to continue planning and to coordinate with department heads on FY27 budget implications for event logistics.
