The music was performed by Eric Lichack and Vincent Costa, both accomplished musicians and deeply interested in 18th-century music.
Janet Lindstrom, the society's executive director, said the society treasures and promotes the town's past, but the vibrant organization is always looking at new ways to explain and interpret that history.
"The wonderful thing I think is that everything is new, there is always something new that is coming," she said.
The organization is carrying forward the mission set by its creators all those years ago.
"The ideas of the people who started the society, they stay, they keep going and they are still the same and I think that is important."
On Saturday, the celebration continues with a Colonial Day program that will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the historical society's grounds, with a range of activities inspired by that era.
Colonial Day kicks off with a costumed fife-and-drum corps, military drill, spinning and weaving exhibitions, Colonial games and activities such as candle-making and quill writing, dances, a general store and refreshments.
The society’s museums will be open, with costumed docents helping to guide visitors through the history of 18th-century New Canaan.
Tickets for the Saturday event are $10 for adults, $5 for children ages 3 and up, or $25 for a four-person family pass.
The Colonial Concert & Cocktails event on Friday evening also honored past historical society board presidents.
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