Highland families heading to the Highland Fling starting Thursday, July 30, will find more than carnival rides and funnel cakes waiting at Heritage Park. The Colonial Heritage Foundation is setting up hands-on Historical Discovery Booths as part of a full America 250 Celebration on Saturday, August 1, following the Grand Parade.

The booths will feature colonial crafts, skilled artisans, and interactive exhibits, Highland City said on X on July 24. The programming also includes live music, historical reenactments, and patriotic performances, the city said in a separate post the same day.

The Colonial Heritage Foundation is a Utah County-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that stages living-history events across the state. Its artisans demonstrate colonial-era trades including blacksmithing, coopering, pottery, printing, candle-making, silversmithing, leather-working, and fiber arts such as spinning and weaving, according to the foundation's website. The foundation describes its flagship event, the Colonial Heritage Festival held annually at Scera Park in Orem, as the nation's largest living-history semiquincentennial celebration west of the original 13 colonies.

It's free to attend.

Highland City is also promoting a "Passport to America Challenge" at the Highland Fling, adding a scavenger-hunt-style element to the America 250 programming. Details on how to participate have not been released.

The Highland Fling runs Thursday, July 30, through Sunday, August 2, at Heritage Park. As we reported July 28, the four-day festival includes food vendors, live music, and fireworks. The America 250 Celebration begins after the Grand Parade on Saturday, August 1; an exact start time has not been announced.