Historical Tour, Concert, Archaeology Exhibit for Trail & Sails in Town

Today is Friday, Sept. 20. Here are five things to know today in Danvers.

1. The 468th U.S. Army Firefighters are waging a war on diabetes and they need your help. Goodies Ice Cream Parlor is hosting a scoop-a-thon Friday afternoon to do just that. Twenty of the proceeds will benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. And we understand McGruff the Crime Dog will also make an appearance thanks to the Danvers and Peabody police.
2. The 20th Annual Danvers Kiwanis Rubber Duck Race is this Saturday. Rain or shine, hundreds of ducks will be dumped into the Porter River next to Popes Landing for the race. There are prizes for the top three racers and 10 runner-ups. Pre-race festivities start at 1:30 p.m. Proceeds from the event benefit local college scholarships. You can find entry forms here.
3. The national Wings of Freedom tour, featuring rare World War II aircraft, is at Beverly Airport this weekend. The tour is Sept. 20-23 and honors WWII veterans. Friday's hours are 2-5 p.m. Admission is a $12 donation for adults and $6 for children under 12. It costs extra, but you can even go up for a ride in some of the planes.
4. Trails & Sails starts up this weekend and there are a few Danvers activities to take in. The new archaeological exhibit at the Rebecca Nurse Homestead that opened this summer will be open again and there will be a repeat of the lecture this Saturday and again Sept. 28 from 1-4 p.m. The lecture is at 2 p.m. The Danvers Historical Society will also host a "Testament of Freedom" concert on Sunday (3 p.m.) at Tapley Hall. Essex Harmony, artists-in-residence, will perform the music of Randall Thompson and Jacob Kimball. And finally, you can stop in and visit the Judge Samuel Holten House on either Saturday or Sunday. Tours are hosted by the General Israel Putnam Chapter of the Daughters of the Revolution.
5. Danvers resident, author, professor and media commentator Dan Kennedy will be at the library Sept. 23 to talk about his new book, "The Wired City." Read more here.