(14-Adult) Challenge yourself with what you thought you knew about our nation’s past with an entertaining history quiz while enjoying afternoon tea. Discover fascinating facts and unexpected truths about our nation’s history, symbols, events and notable figures - including some former Green Spring residents.

(6-Adult) Learn about the artifacts that tell us about Green Spring’s past. Do a hands-on artifact assembly with pottery shards using archaeology tools and tips. Decorate your own teacup based on historical styles before having tea and treats as you discuss what your cup’s patterns can tell you about the past. Children must be accompanied by an adult registered in the program.

(12-Adult) Join award-winning author P. O’Connell Pearson for an engaging exploration of her acclaimed book Fighting for the Forest: How FDR's Civilian Conservation Corps Helped Save America. Discover the true stories of the young men of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) who helped restore America’s landscapes into National Parks during the Great Depression. Then bring it to life by designing erosion-control structures in groups to explore the real-world impact of these young environmental pioneers. Wrap up the program by planting a tree together, honoring the legacy of the CCC and making a lasting contribution to the future of Fairfax County forests. This program links to the VA250 and Fairfax250 commemoration.

(6-Adult) Hike the trail and learn about the history of abandoned sites hidden from most visitor’s view. Follow trails of forested areas and Cain’s Branch waterway to learn about the life of early inhabitants who made Sully their home. This outdoor guided program does involve some walking over uneven terrain and along trails. Program is held weather permitting.

(16-Adult) In this program, learn the basics of using plants from the garden to make oils, tinctures and vinegars. Learn how different infusions extract different properties from the plants and how plants have been used in traditional medicines for healing and strengthening the immune system. Participants will go home with one tincture, one vinegar and one oil.

(6-Adult) Our Continental Army, formed in 1775, was created from colonial volunteers. Farmers and tradespeople learned to follow directions, march and fight as one unit. Join us as we practice drilling and talk about the Army's struggles and successes around the campfire.

(8-Adult) Farming is the backbone of America, and farm animals have changed over time with breeding. Learn more about historic animal breeds that have lived in America and then meet and interact with some of their modern descendants. This program links to the VA250 and Fairfax250 commemoration.

(All Ages) Bring Dad or Grandad out to see and hear 19th century technology at work. The miller will be grinding, conditions permitting. Please call the site to confirm. Free admission for Fathers and Grandfathers.

(16-Adult) Beatrix Farrand’s small-scale landscape at Green Spring is one of the few surviving gardens of this acknowledged master of twentieth century American landscape design. Hear about her unconventional life and brilliant career, why she designed a garden at Green Spring, and how we continue to protect her important legacy. Refreshments served. Meet at the Historic House.

(Adults) Enjoy a docent-led tour of the vibrant summer demonstration gardens. Finish at the Historic House lawn to enjoy delicious ices, served with toppings and garnishes.

(14-Adult) African Americans' labor, experience, and knowledge were crucial to 19th-century grist milling. Explore a historic mill as you discuss the contributions of African American millers in Fairfax County. This program links to the VA250 and Fairfax 250 commemoration.

(8-Adult) Learn steps of wool textile production. Use hand cards to separate wool fibers and prepare them for spinning or felting. Discover wet and dry felting as you produce take-home woolen balls for laundry or decoration.

(8-Adult) Discover the bounty of edible plants in your backyard. Join us to hunt edible plants and explore how the people of Sully used wild plants for food and medicine.

(8-Adult) Unearth the secrets of crafting clay pots and make a pot to take home. Discover the traditional methods of making paints and pigments from natural materials, connecting with our ancestors' resourcefulness.  

(12-Adult) Discover how woolen textiles were made in the 19th century and examine different spinning wheels. Learn to use a drop spindle and spin wool yarn to take home.

(6-Adult) The food we grow and eat has nourished us and changed us over the last two and a half centuries. From Three sisters to victory gardens, to regenerative soil management, we are what we grow. Come and touch some of the plants that have touched history as we celebrate 250 years of American gardens. This program links to the VA250 and Fairfax250 commemoration.

(16-Adult) View the interior of the 1784 Historic House to discover fascinating ways it was adapted over time, reflecting changing needs, lifestyles and technologies spanning 3 centuries. A hidden doorway, a rotated staircase, repurposed historic woodwork and a major mid-20th century renovation all reveal how much a home can tell us about human history.

(3-Adult) Enjoy a summer afternoon like the miller's family did in the 1800s. Churn and eat ice cream. Play with historic games and toys, then make a toy to take home.

(All Ages) Learn about the history and process of making this sweet treat while you tour Historic Green Spring. Try your hand at making a batch the old way before sampling the fruits of your labor. Children must be accompanied by an adult registered in the program.

(All Ages) Make and enjoy hand-cranked ice cream as Huntley's Harris family may have done. Discover how the histories of ice cream and Huntley follow a similar path from elite luxury to family fare. Ice well and Historic Huntley House tour included.

(16-Adult) The emergence of the Colonial Revival dates to the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, which inspired a powerful national movement to connect with America’s past. Discover why this collective nostalgia took hold and the different ways it was expressed. In architecture, the movement peaked from the late 1800s to the mid-20th century, when Green Spring’s Historic House received an extensive Colonial Revival-style rehabilitation. A brief guided tour of the exterior and interior of the house follows the presentation. Refreshments served. This program links to the VA250 and Fairfax250 commemoration.

(16-Adult) Explore the surprising origins and botany of the strawberry, the quintessential summer fruit that’s perfect for garden parties. Learn how strawberries got their name, why they’re red, how to grow them and how to eat them. Hear about the “garden room” behind Green Spring’s Historic House, designed in 1942 as an entertainment space for distinguished guests. Then walk over to the house to be our guests and enjoy a bowl of the classic summer dessert - strawberries and fresh cream – garden party-style.

(16-Adult) Throughout history, collective storytelling has sometimes blurred the lines between reality and folklore. Hear about popular historical fictions in Virginia’s history, how some have been debunked by historians and others endure. Close to home, discover some historical myths of Fairfax County, and a few that we’ve discovered and corrected at Historic Green Spring. Refreshments served. This program links to the VA250 and Fairfax250 commemoration.

(4-Adult) Crank ice cream as you discover how ice was harvested and stored in this 19th century farm. Try using ice tongs. Children must be accompanied registered adult.

(Adults) Enjoy an afternoon tea circa 1830 much as Betsey Mason would have with the gleam of polished silver and proper tea etiquette. Sample a menu of tasty treats appropriate to the period in an historic setting as you brush up on your tea history. Includes a tour of Historic Huntley.

(4-Adult) Explore 200-year-old Colvin Run Mill as we grind grain using the power of the waterwheel. Hear and smell the grindstones at work. Learn how automated gristmills revolutionized flour production. Visit the 19th century Miller's House and stop by Colvin Run General Store to purchase our ground grain. This program links to the VA250 and Fairfax250 commemoration.

(10-Adult) Watch an outdoor screening of Sense of Sensibility (1995) at the 19th century gristmill. Bring your own blanket or low lawn chair. Refreshments and concessions will be available for purchase. The Miller's House Exhibit will be open for self-guided tours at 7:30pm and will close at the start of the film. The film will start at sunset (8:30pm).

(8-Adult) Texts written in 1791 were written with a quill pen and ink on paper. The Frying Pan Meeting House Minutes were written over two hundred years ago and give us insights today into life during that time. Come and learn about the people’s stories recorded in the minutes in the late 1700s and tour the Meeting House and cemetery. Experience writing a message with a quill pen and ink which was an essential tool for communicating before new technologies became available.

(6-Adult) Eat and drink your way through historical milestones from the last 250 years. Changing tastes and ingredients make our history full of flavor and delight. Taste history at this program and take some recipes home to try for yourself. This program links to the VA250 and Fairfax250 commemoration.

(Adults) Take a stroll with us on the less-visited side of the park to uncover the history of spies, espionage and how the Cold War struggle between the US and the USSR shaped Huntley and the Fairfax County we know today. Meets at South King Highway entrance includes a 2.4 mile walk over flat terrain.

(21 yrs.+) Follow whiskey's journey from grain to glass. Explore the 19th century gristmill cracking the needed wheat, learn about the distilling process and taste local spirits. The historic relationship between mills and distilleries was as important then, as it is today. Snacks will be provided. This program links to the VA250 and Fairfax250 commemoration.

(3-Adult) Bring your child to the mill and celebrate Spring. We’ll have tea, savory and sweet treats and play 19th century games. Children must be accompanied by a registered adult.

(16-Adult) Historic inventories reveal that tea was enjoyed by residents of Green Spring from the early 1800s to the mid-20th century. Learn about the historical shift from green to black teas in America during this time as you sample a range of both tea types. Learn about their geographic origins, cultivation and history, how to brew them to perfection and why black and green teas are still the most widely consumed by Americans today. Accompaniments served. This program links to the VA250 and Fairfax250 commemoration.

(6-Adult) Discover more about the turbulent history and importance of Sully and Fairfax County during the Civil War. Tour the historic site and learn about the different figures who experienced the war at Sully. Hear about Maria Barlow, who encountered and dealt with troops on both sides. Gain a better understanding of the effects the war had on Fairfax County and why it matters today. This program links to the VA250 and the Fairfax250 commemoration.

(8-Adult) Learn about the people who signed the Declaration and why they took the risk, then decide if you'd sign too. Discover what the fight for liberty meant for different people. Help build a Liberty 2026 wall by posting what the Declaration means to you, while enjoying refreshments. This program links to the VA250 and the Fairfax250 commemoration.

(Adults) Learn how trees pinpointed a construction date for Green Spring’s 1784 Historic House through the fascinating science of dendrochronology. Hear all about the exciting process that solved a long-standing mystery and revealed more about Green Spring’s history. Discover that tree-ring dating has been used to date many things, from a Stradivarius violin to a portrait of Mary Queen of Scots, and that it can interpret long-ago environmental events and help to predict future trends.