The George Washington Whiskey Rebellion Fest returns to the Allegany Museum for its 10th year on Friday, September 11, from 6 to 10 p.m.
This is more than a whiskey tasting. Guests can explore the museum while enjoying regional spirits, live Scots-Irish music, historical reenactments, colonial tavern games, catered food, an open beer and wine bar, and one of our largest silent auctions yet.
The festival commemorates George Washington’s final visit to Cumberland during the Whiskey Rebellion of 1794—and brings that history to life throughout the museum.
Guests can enjoy unlimited tastings from participating distillers and beverage makers, including:
General admission also includes an open beer and wine bar.
The Chivalrous Crickets, a Philadelphia-based group specializing in Scots-Irish music, will perform throughout the evening. Presented by Mountainside Baroque, the group brings together fiddles, whistles, harp, harmonium, small pipes, and vocals to create performances that feel more like a lively musical conversation than a formal concert.
Performances will begin at:
Historical reenactors will bring the people and stories of the Whiskey Rebellion to life as guests move through the museum.
Ryan Cuba will also return with a collection of 18th-century colonial tavern games. Try your hand at historic dice and card games or challenge your friends to tabletop games such as Nine Men’s Morris and Fox and Geese.
Good Carma Catering will provide food and appetizers throughout the evening. The menu will include beef, bacon, and bleu sliders with whiskey bacon jam; bourbon barbecue smoked-pork sliders; vegetable potstickers; and more.
Our premier silent auction will feature Caribbean vacation packages, West Virginia University football tickets, artwork by local artists, gift certificates, local experiences, and other special packages.
The popular “Year of” certificates will also return, with local businesses offering winners something special to enjoy each month throughout the coming year.
Author and event sponsor Jon Ketzner will be available to sign copies of his new novel, Coincidence. The book explores the assassination of President John F. Kennedy through historical detail and provocative speculation.
General admission includes:
Advance tickets are $60. Door tickets are $80.
Tickets may be purchased at the Allegany Museum, Liberty Street General Store, or online using the link below:
Purchase Whiskey Rebellion Fest Tickets
The Whiskey Rebellion Fest is the Allegany Museum’s largest annual fundraiser. Proceeds help keep museum admission free, provide educational programs for students and adults, and preserve more than 50,000 artifacts that tell the story of Allegany County and the surrounding region.
The 10th Annual George Washington Whiskey Rebellion Fest is presented by the Community Trust Foundation in partnership with Boggs and Company Wealth Management.
Friday, September 11 | 6–10 p.m.
Allegany Museum | 3 Pershing Street, Cumberland
You can purchase tickets at the Allegany Museum and the Liberty Street General Store or directly from the link below.
The Whiskey Rebellion was a protest against in the first tax imposed on a domestic product by the newly formed federal government. The so-called “whiskey tax” became law in 1791. The tax applied to all distilled spirits, but whiskey was by far the country’s most popular distilled beverage in the 18th century, so the excise became widely known as a “whiskey tax”. Farmers in the Cumberland area and other places along the western frontier were long accustomed to distilling their surplus grain and corn into whiskey. In these regions, whiskey was sufficiently popular that it often served as a medium of exchange. Tax collectors faced violence and intimidation. Washington called on state governors to send a militia force to enforce the tax. President Washington himself arrived in Cumberland to lead the gathered militias; the only time a sitting President has lead troops into the field.
It was George Washington’s last military sortie. Washington also began his military career in Cumberland, as a Colonel under General Braddock in the French and Indian wars. His preserved cabin headquarters is located in downtown Cumberland (pictured to the left).
The history of whiskey fun! To commemorate this event and other local history, Allegany Museum hosts its annual Whiskey Rebellion Celebration. The Whiskey Rebellion Fest is also a major fundraiser for Allegany Museum. Allegany Museum is a non-profit entity, and relies on donations, gifts, and fundraisers to keep its doors open. 2016 saw the inaugural Friday evening Fest, and it was an overwhelming success. A capacity crowd thronged the Museum’s historic ballroom and enjoyed tastings of whiskey and other spirits, historic re-enactments, a colonial ‘pub’ room providing authentic colonial games, photos with ‘President Washington’, canapés, presentations of cigar/whiskey pairings and free cigars. The Museum also mounted an exhibition of historic whiskey bottles, jugs, and ephemera at the event and in the weeks before and after. Enjoy this and more at the 2025 Whiskey Rebellion Fest, September 12! Brought to you by the Community Trust Foundation in conjunction with Boggs and Company Wealth Management
Baltimore Whiskey Co • Bloomery • Charis • Dad’s Hat • Dragon Distillery • Grey Wolf • Lost Ark Distilling Co. • Lyon Distilling Company • Maker’s Mark • Manatawny Still Works • McClintock Distilling Company • Miscellaneous Distillery • Red Pump • Republic National • Sagamore Spirit • Tall Pines • Tenth Ward Distilling Company • Twin Valley Distillers • White Tiger Distillery • AND MORE!
Get your name on the greatest Fest in town!
George Washington’s Whiskey Rebellion Fest: Thank you to our Fabulous Sponsors!
And a special thank you to Vic Rezendes, Sandi Saville, and Mary Shrout
BECOME A SPONSOR!
Hundreds of individuals, companies, and groups have sponsored the activities at the George Washington Whiskey Rebellion Fest. Their sponsorship contributed to keeping the doors of this fine regional museum open. Join them today for this year’s Fest! email Joe Caporale at joe.caporale@alleganyradio.com
Why Washington? Why Cumberland, MD? George Washington visited this area at important points in his life and career.
In March 1748, during his time as a surveyor, he wrote of visiting the Cresap home at the mouth of the South Branch of the Potomac. He notes of this part of his journey: “I believe ye worst road than ever was trod by Man or Beast.” Washington began and ended his military service in Cumberland. He first visited in 1755 as Colonel George Washington, serving under Braddock in the French and Indian War.
In 1794, as the Commander in Chief, he reviewed the troops gathered at Fort Cumberland to put down the Whiskey Rebellion. Visit all these places and more when you are in Cumberland to attend this year’s Whiskey Rebellion Fest at the Allegany Museum in Cumberland, Friday, September 11, 6 to 10 pm.
