By Robert Fisher-Hughes, AAP Columnist and Amateur Historian

This month, wildlife and watersheds, woodcraft, and other matters of the historical environment of Pennsauken and its neighbors are the themes to be explored at the colonial home on the bank of Pennsauken Creek, where the Burrough family first settled in 1710.

The Burrough-Dover House itself is the first image of our ancestral relationship to the natural world: built from natural, local sandstone and timbers felled at the site and still standing more than 300 years later; a true example of sustainability. How many more lessons of environmental significance can we learn in a day by the creek and the woods on the site of the historic colonial farm? Find out at the annual “Colonial Earth Day” event on Sunday, May 6, from noon to 4:00 p.m.

This year’s program includes live animals from the Freedom Center for Wildlife, presentations about the important function of watersheds like Pennsauken Creek and the Delaware Valley on our environment, crafts using natural materials, colonial and native lifestyle lessons, and the beauty of the rustic nature trail on the spring-bedecked grounds surrounding the historic English Quaker home.

Demonstrations and exhibits by the volunteers of Pennsauken Historical Society demonstrate the dual nature of colonial life in a natural environment, both adapting to and attempting to conquer nature. Kids’ crafts and activities, tours of the historic house and museum, and a day out in the natural world make this free, annual event among our most popular!

Historic Griffith Morgan House will also be open for this “First Sunday” in May, with free tours and historical hospitality from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. Both historic houses of Pennsauken offer lots of opportunity for fun on a fine spring day on May 6!

Admission is free at both houses; there is plenty of free parking too! Memberships and volunteer opportunities are available and donations are always welcome to help Pennsauken Historical Society sustain its own mission in our community.

Burrough-Dover House is located at 9201 Burrough-Dover Lane, off Haddonfield Road near the Wyndam Rd. traffic light. Griffith Morgan House is located at 243 Griffith Morgan Lane, off River Rd. between Delair and Rt. 73.

Visit the Griffith Morgan House or Pennsauken Historical Society pages or the group “Pennsauken History Forum” on Facebook for more details or directions or e-mail to pennsaukenhistoricalsociety@gmail.com.