RINGWOOD – Cannons fire over the bend, shaking the ground. Campfire smoke rises over the hills in small puffs. An encampment hums with the activities of soldiers, blacksmiths and merchants wearing attire from history books.

Attendees of the McHenry County Conservation District’s 24th annual Trail of History witnessed all that and more Saturday. For three days and two nights, ending today, re-enactors at Glacial Park portray inhabitants of the Northwest Territory from 1670 to 1850.

“It’s a reminder of how important the land is for us,” said Wendy Kummerer, the
conservation district’s communications manager. “This is a way for people to learn the history and the trades and to really see what life was like in a simpler time.”