Joshua Hempsted is one of New London's best-known historical figures. People today know a lot about his life in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, since he kept a diary for a half-century. He was one of the Whaling City's foremost citizens of his time, serving as justice of the peace, among other offices, and holding down odd jobs in addition to farming.

On Sunday, the Hempsted Houses are honoring Joshua on the occasion of the 336th birthday.

Naturally, cake will be served, as will lemonade. A lot of historical events will be part of the event, too. Visitors can learn how to start a fire with flint and steel, how to pitch hay and use a yoke and buckets to tote water.

They can learn how to fire a 1700s musket with the Sons of the American Revolution, write with the Mysticalligraphers Guild's Trix Bodde, and carve a gravestone with the Connecticut Gravestone Network's Ty Tryon and Ruth Shapleigh-Brown.

- KRISTINA DORSEY

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Joshua Hempsted's 336th Birthday, 1-4 p.m. Sunday, Hempsted Houses, 11 Hempstead St., New London; suggested donation $5 per person, $10 per family; (860) 443-7949.