By Cecilia Nasmith

Alnwick-Haldimand Township Town Crier Liam Cragg will actually be wearing two hats Monday morning, July 13.

The tricorn hat on his head (along with the rest of his distinctive costume) will represent his role as town crier. The invisible hat he will wear is that of heritage ambassador, as he celebrates International Town Criers Day with a walking tour of 22 heritage spots of significance in downtown Grafton.

The Walking Tour of Historic Grafton is a well-established route Heritage Alnwick Haldimand put together years ago in pamphlet form – if you don't have one, Cragg pointed out, there's a PDF version on the township website under “heritage.”

As a member of the local heritage community himself, Cragg found it a quick project to organize when the 23rd anniversary of International Town Criers Day (second Monday in July, as designated in 1997, according to Chase's Book of Days) kind of snuck up on him, Meanwhile, he is also preparing to deliver the Grafton Declaration to mark the occasion.

Cragg will begin at 9 a.m. (to take advantage of the cooler morning hours) at the town hall on County Road 2. At each stop, he will cry out some significant information and take any questions (though he doesn't promise to be able to answer every one). He expects the whole circuit will be done within two hours.

“These are great properties – close together,” Cragg said - “properties to be proud of.”

If you'd like to learn more about your favourite downtown-Grafton landmark, the Grafton Village Inn, the former Quaker meeting hall, the former blacksmith forge, various heritage homes and many more significant properties await. Gather at 9 a.m. July 13 and listen in.

And in respect of the COVID-19 pandemic, Cragg is asking everyone to bring a mask and heed proper social-distancing protocols.