Events

Via Colori 2025

Via Colori® Stafford! is a two-day, family-friendly event, taking place from 10:00 to 5:00 p.m. Saturday, September 27, through Sunday, September 27, 2025.

The event will be held at the Stafford Regional Airport. Accessible parking and portable restrooms will be available. Food vendors will be on-site should you wish to purchase refreshments. The event is free for participating artists and the public, and you’ll find a number of community organizations and sponsor tables to visit, plus activities for children. Artists will be busy creating their chalk paintings on well-spaced squares, so you’ll be able to walk around and watch them in action.

We’re pleased to announce that Erik Greenawalt, aka “The Chalking Dad,” has been selected as the 5th annual Via Colori® Stafford Featured Artist. A certified “master” chalk artist in the Florida Chalk Artist Association, Erik participates in street painting festivals around the world, creating elaborate chalk drawings. Erik has chalked at the Australia Zoo and for corporate clients such as BBC/Ludo Studio, Under Armour, and Disney.

The Chalking Dad will be joined by 2025 Signature Artist Bethany Ablondi and 70 local artists as they create large-scale pastel artworks directly on the pavement at this celebration of the arts


In addition to the artists creations, there will be live entertainment, nonprofit vendors, food vendors, and a children’s activity area. 

Learn more at: vcstafford.com

The Stafford County Historical Society live history programs is in its fifth decade. The dates of upcoming events are listed below along with archived recordings for the series at the bottom of the page.

We look forward to seeing you!

All presentations are open to the public and are free of charge!

Featured Event
July 2025

Frances Benjamin Johnston in Falmouth

Saturday, July 12th 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM

Central Rappahannock Regional Library, Porter Branch
2001 Parkway Boulevard, Stafford, VA, USA

With Connie Hilker.

In 1927, photographer Frances Benjamin Johnston was hired by the owners of Chatham Manor, Daniel and Helen Devore, to document their newly restored mansion and garden.  While she was there, Johnston also photographed many of the other structures in Falmouth.  In this program by Connie Hilker, we will learn about FBJ’s life and compare her 1927 images to what these locations look like today.

Connie is the current President of the Stafford County Historical Society. She has a passion for history, tools and construction. She and her husband, Steve, are actively restoring their historic Stafford residence, Hartwood Manor—a brick Gothic Revival farmhouse built in 1848—renovating its outbuildings and designing the gardens on their nine-acre property.

August 2025

HFFI – Dance at the USO

Friday, August 15th

Dorothy Hart Community Center
408 Canal St, Fredericksburg, VA 22401, USA

HFFI EVENT

Friday, August 15, 2025-Dance at the USO: Dance the night away with the Fredericksburg Big band on the 80th anniversary of the end of WWII.

Saturday, August 16, 2025-Open House at the USO: Learn about the history of the original USO building (now Dorothy Hart Community Center) with WWII artifacts, a bloodmobile, Leashes of Valor, kids activities, and more.

Dance tickets COMING SOON

September 2025

Government Island Walking Tour

Saturday, September 6th 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM

Government Island Park
191 Coal Landing Rd, Stafford, VA 22554, USA

Join us for an educational and fun tour of Government Island Park. The tour will include historical details about the limestone industry in Stafford County by historian, Jerrilynn Eby MacGregor, demonstrations of the mining process by past Stafford County Historical Society President, Rick MacGregor, as well special stories for the children by the historian largely responsible for the park’s creation, Jane Conner.

An elevated boardwalk enables visitors to explore a nature trail through wetlands and woods.  A scenic heritage trail through the 17 acre island is dotted with interpretive signage enabling the viewer to learn the island’s history from Native American through the early nineteenth century.  The island, with its wetlands and marsh areas, provides a variety of habitats for birds and other wildlife. Government Island, “America’s Historic Stone Quarry,” is on the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register.

Rain date for the event will be Saturday, September 13 (1pm – 3pm).

Via Colori 2025

Saturday, September 27th 10:00 AM – Sunday, September 28th 5:00 PM

Stafford Regional Airport

Via Colori® Stafford! is a two-day, family-friendly event, taking place from 10:00 to 5:00 p.m. Saturday, September 27, through Sunday, September 27, 2025.

The event will be held at the Stafford Regional Airport. Accessible parking and portable restrooms will be available. Food vendors will be on-site should you wish to purchase refreshments. The event is free for participating artists and the public, and you’ll find a number of community organizations and sponsor tables to visit, plus activities for children. Artists will be busy creating their chalk paintings on well-spaced squares, so you’ll be able to walk around and watch them in action.

We’re pleased to announce that Erik Greenawalt, aka “The Chalking Dad,” has been selected as the 5th annual Via Colori® Stafford Featured Artist. A certified “master” chalk artist in the Florida Chalk Artist Association, Erik participates in street painting festivals around the world, creating elaborate chalk drawings. Erik has chalked at the Australia Zoo and for corporate clients such as BBC/Ludo Studio, Under Armour, and Disney.

The Chalking Dad will be joined by 2025 Signature Artist Bethany Ablondi and 70 local artists as they create large-scale pastel artworks directly on the pavement at this celebration of the arts


In addition to the artists creations, there will be live entertainment, nonprofit vendors, food vendors, and a children’s activity area. 

Learn more at: vcstafford.com

Past Presentations