Stay Cool with Historic Alexandria This Summer!

Page updated on June 4, 2025 at 9:37 AM
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Stay Cool with Historic Alexandria This Summer!

The Office of Historic Alexandria invites residents and visitors to stay cool this summer with a vibrant array of programs and events that bring Alexandria’s rich and diverse history to you. From live concerts and commemorations to specialty tours and interactive activities, there’s something for everyone to enjoy. Ticketed events can be purchased in the Historic Alexandria shop. 

Featured Events

D-Day Commemoration
Market Square | June 1 | 1–4 p.m. | Free
Honor the heroes of WWII with the Alexandria-Caen Sister City Committee. Enjoy reenactors, a jazz band, the U.S. Army Fife and Drum Corps, children’s activities, and more.

D-Day Lecture
Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum | June 5 | 7–9 p.m.
$15, $12 for Historic Alexandria Members
Discover “T Force” and its shadow operations under General Eisenhower during WWII.

Pride Month Events
• Proud History Hangout – June 12 | 5:30–7:30 p.m. | Free | Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum
Learn about our Oral History division and share your story, talk to the Alexandria LGBTQ+ Task Force, learn about LGBTQIA+ history, and make a fun shrinky-dink to take home. Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages available for purchase. Ages 16 and up.

• Tavern Game Night: Pride Edition – June 20 | 7–9 p.m. | $10 | Gadsby’s Tavern Museum
Celebrate LGBTQIA+ history with fun games, storytelling, and interactive experiences.

Juneteenth Celebrations
• Revels Concert – June 19 | 1–3 p.m. | Free | Market Square
Enjoy traditional African American storytelling and songs reflecting the journey toward freedom with the Washington Revels Jubilee Voices ensemble. Weather dependent.

• Juneteenth Festival – June 21 | Noon–6 p.m. | Free | Charles Houston Rec Center
Celebrate African American heritage through music, storytelling, food, and family fun.

Specialty Tours – A Summer Highlight!

Take a deeper dive into Alexandria’s fascinating past with these themed tours, offered throughout the summer at various sites.
 $15, $12 for Historic Alexandria Members

• Gadsby’s Tavern Museum

  • Peeling Back the Layers 
    Explore Gadsby's Tavern Museum top to bottom, including spaces rarely opened to the public, and understand how the buildings have changed over time.
  • Hamilton’s BFFs & Frenemies
    Inspired by the musical Hamilton, learn how the paths of Washington, Lafayette, Jefferson, Madison, and Burr all intersected with this local tavern. 

• Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum

  • Magical Apothecary 
    Learn about the muggle botanical science that inspired the potions and herbology of Harry Potter's wizarding world. Make your own magical potion! Recommended for ages 8 and up.
  • Poison
    Apothecary Museum's Poisons Tour explores different types of poisons, their historic uses at the Apothecary, and what we know today. Recommended for ages 18 and up.
  • Outlandish  
    Learn about a few herbal medicines featured in Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series of novels from cascara to dauco seeds. Recommended for ages 18 and up.
  • Midwifery  
    Explore the role, knowledge, and challenges of Midwives through the lens of the Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum and its collection of historic medicines and archives. Recommended for ages 18 and older. 

• Fort Ward Museum & Historic Site

  • Civil War Medicine
    Showcases various objects related to medical care during the Civil War, such as uniforms, diaries, letters, and medical supplies. The exhibits explore the common soldier's life, artillery, and medical practices.
  • Fort Ward and Lewis Cass White 
    The exhibit explores the efforts of a Civil War veteran to preserve and recognize the site of Fort Stevens in the Defenses of Washington. 

Throughout the Summer Highlights

Apothecary Late Night – NEW! 
Every Saturday in June & July | Open until 7 p.m.
Tour the Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum and shop the store’s magical offerings.

Family Day with Young Historians
Gadsby’s Tavern Museum | Sundays, June 15–Labor Day | 2–5 p.m.
Student-led tours and fun activity stations!

Kids Scavenger Hunt
Included with regular museum admission. Visit multiple sites, solve clues, and win a prize!

Story Time for Little Historians
Alexandria Black History Museum | Second Saturdays | 10–10:45 a.m. | Free
Dynamic, inclusive storytelling for kids ages 5–8.

Explore with Ease – The New Museum Mobility Guide

Historic Alexandria and the Department of Transportation & Environmental Services (T&ES) have launched a colorful, easy-to-use map and guide connecting all of Alexandria’s museums via walking, biking, and transit. The guide also acts as a passport—visit every site and earn a prize! Available at museums, rec centers, libraries, and more.

Other Exciting Summer Events in Historic Alexandria

• Alexandria’s Treasures: Escape Room Edition – May 30 | 7–9 p.m. | The Lyceum | $35
• Pipes & Drums Summer Concert Series – June 5, July 10, August 7 | Market Square | Free
• Hooff’s Run Dedication Day – June 7 | 10 a.m.–Noon | African American Heritage Park | Free
• 8th Green Machine Regiment Band – June 14 | 11 a.m.–Noon | Fort Ward | Donation Suggested
• Music of the Regiment – June 23 | 7–8 p.m. | Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum | $20
• Harry Potter Birthday Event – July 27 | 1–5 p.m. | Apothecary Museum | $15
• Friendship Firehouse Festival – August 2 | 9 a.m.–2 p.m. | Friendship Firehouse Museum | Free

Souvenirs of Historic Alexandria

New this summer – check out souvenirs from the collection of Historic Alexandria. Explore nostalgic treasures at Alexandria History Museum at The Lyceum, including vintage postcards, reproduction housewares, and rare commemorative items from the 1930s to 1970s. These charming artifacts reflect how Alexandria has remembered and celebrated its history through the years. 

Visit alexandriava.gov/Historic for event details, tickets, and updates.
Celebrate the season, the city, and the stories that shape us—only with Historic Alexandria.

For reasonable disability accommodation, contact Nicole Quinn at historicalexandria@alexandriava.gov or call 703.746.4554, Virginia Relay 711.

If you prefer communication in another language, free interpretation and translation services are available to you, please email LanguageAccess@alexandriava.gov or call 703-746-3960.

About the Office of Historic Alexandria
The Office of Historic Alexandria preserves and shares the history of the City of Alexandria with eight museums, historic sites, archives, archaeology, tours, exhibits and public programs. Through powerful storytelling and confronting the City’s past, Historic Alexandria enriches the present and inspires the future. We enhance the quality of life for residents and visitors and serve as a partner in the City’s equity and inclusion initiatives. For more information, visit alexandriava.gov/Historic.