4th of July – Salem Happenings

Boston’s Fourth of July Celebration

There’s no better time to enjoy fireworks and patriotic music than Fourth of July weekend, and if you’re looking for the best fireworks show around, there’s probably no better show than the Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular. However, the show, which has been a tradition in Boston for over 40 years now finds itself in sort of a precarious position, as the show’s founder, David Mugar, is retiring this year and the show has lost its primary sponsor. As a result, there will almost certainly be some changes on the horizon for the Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular and the future of the event is certainly up in the air (even though it is unlikely that the show will disappear entirely.) This means that if you want to see what the event has traditionally been like, this is definitely the year to go.

The event, which takes place from approximately 8:00 P.M. to 11:00 P.M. on Monday (July 4, 2016), will feature performances by Demi Lovato, Little Big Town, Nick Jonas, and, of course, the Boston Pops. These performances will then be followed by a fireworks show carried out by Fireworks by Grucci, the current holders of the Guinness World Record for the “Largest Fireworks Display” and the “Largest Pyrotechnic Image.” There will also be a preview concert for the show on Sunday (July 3, 2016) from 8:30 to 10:00 P.M. that will feature all of the performances but none of the fireworks if you can’t make it on Monday or you have little ones that aren’t really that keen on the popping noise. For more information on the Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular and the Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular Preview Concert, which both take place at the DCR Hatch Memorial Shell on the Esplanade in Boston, please visit Boston’s Fourth of July website.

Photo credit: Mike Halsall via Visual Hunt / CC BY-ND

Celebrate Your Independence in the Witch City!

Looking for a great place to celebrate the 4th? Well, if you are, you may want to consider spending the day in Salem. Now, I know that the idea of celebrating Independence Day in Salem may seem a bit strange since it is known as the Witch City, but it is important to remember that the Salem Witch Trials are not the only claim to fame that the city has. In fact, Salem has a rich maritime history that stretches back to long before the American Revolutionary War, and you would be hard pressed to find too many locales that offer a better place to celebrate our country’s independence than one of the busiest merchant ports of the revolution. As a result, if you’re really looking for a great way to celebrate the 4th of July, you should definitely check out some of these events in Salem.

First, if you’re a morning person and/or a huge history buff, you will definitely want to be on Salem Common tomorrow morning. This is because Salem’s annual reading of the Declaration of Independence will take place on the common at 9:00 A.M. tomorrow (July 4, 2015.) This reading will give you the chance to join the mayor and a number of other officials from Salem as you hear the words that helped ignite the American Revolution. For more information on the Reading of the Declaration of Independence in Salem, please visit the Official City of Salem website.

Secondly, if you’re more interested in the actual celebration than the history behind it or you would simply like to enjoy both the history and the celebration, you will probably want to be on Derby Wharf tomorrow afternoon. This is because the National Historic Site at Derby Wharf is the location of the annual 4th of July festivities in Salem. These festivities will include a salute to the armed forces, kids activities, music from the band LUX and the Hillyer Festival Orchestra, a flyover by the 104th Fighter Wing of the Barnes Air National Guard Unit, and, of course, an amazing fireworks display. For more information on the 4th of July Celebration in Salem, including information about parking and additional security measures that have been added this year, please visit the Official Salem, MA Guide.

Photo credit: svenstorm / Foter / CC BY-ND

A Rainy 4th of July

The word “independence” is a fascinating term because it has so many different uses. In fact, if you’re talking about a child’s independence, you may be talking about the increasing amount of freedom that the child has as he or she enters the world, grows in it, and takes a meaningful (or not-so-meaningful) place in our society. If you’re talking about a contractor or a company that is considered to be independent, you may be talking about the ability of that individual or company to work without the influence or assistance of a larger company or chain. If you’re talking about a political stance, you may be talking about a group of individuals that ultimately believe all of our politicians are insane and that there’s no reason to agree with any of them. However, regardless of how you’ve used the term in the past, there is one thing that always remains the same about the word “independence” and that is the fact that it means freedom. And freedom is what today is really about.

Unfortunately, no matter how free we are, there is one entity that is very hard for us to maintain our independence from and that entity is Mother Nature. As a result, if your 4th of July festivities have been rained out or at least dampened by the oncoming hurricane, here is a list of some of the places in the Boston area that have already scheduled or rescheduled their holiday celebrations for later on this weekend.

All times are approximate and dates/times are (not surprisingly) subject to change.

Acton: 7/5/2014 at 9:30 P.M.
Amesbury: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Attleboro: 7/5/2014 as soon as the sun sets.
Auburn: 7/6/2014 at 9:30 P.M.
Ayer: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Bellingham: 7/5/2014 at 9:30 P.M.
Bridgewater: 7/5/2014 at 9:30 P.M.
Brockton: 7/5/2014 at 10:45 P.M.
Canton: 7/6/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Danvers: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Eastham: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Edgartown: 7/5/2014 as soon as the sun sets.
Fall River: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Falmouth: 7/6/2014 as soon as the sun sets.
Fitchburg: 7/5/2014 at 10:00 P.M.
Freetown: 7/6/2014 at 8:00 P.M.
Greenfield: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Lawrence: 7/5/2014 at 6:00 P.M. (Fireworks at approximately 9:30 P.M.)
Lincoln: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Lowell: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Lynn: 7/6/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Manchester by the Sea: 7/6/2014 at 9:15 P.M.
Marblehead: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Marion: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Middleborough: 7/5/2014 at 10:00 P.M.
Milford: 7/5/2014 at 10:00 P.M.
Millbury: 7/5/2014 at 9:30 P.M.
Nahant: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Nantucket: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
North Reading: 7/5/2014 at 9:30 P.M.
Northbridge: 7/6/2014 at 9:30 P.M.
Oakham: 7/5/2014 at 9:30 P.M.
Onset: 7/5/2014 at 9:20 P.M.
Orleans: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Pepperall: 7/5/2014 as soon as the sun sets.
Plymouth: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Provincetown: 7/5/2014 as soon as the sun sets.
Rutland: 7/6/2014 at 9:20 P.M.
Salem: 7/6/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Salisbury: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Seekonk: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Spencer: 7/5/2014 at 9:30 P.M.
Stoughton: 7/5/2014 at 9:30 P.M.
Sturbridge Village: 7/5/2014 as soon as the sun sets.
Swampscott: 7/6/2014 as soon as the sun sets.
Walpole: 7/6/2014 at 9:30 P.M.
Waltham: 7/6/2014 at 9:30 P.M.
Wareham: 7/5/2014 at 9:20 P.M.
Webster: 7/6/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Westfield: 7/5/2014 at 9:15 P.M.
Wilmington: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Winthrop: 7/5/2014 at 9:00 P.M.
Worcester: 7/5/2014 at 9:30 P.M.

Please Note: This list only includes towns and cities that officially scheduled or rescheduled their 4th of July festivities (specifically their fireworks) to the 5th or 6th prior to the time of this posting (approximately 10:00 A.M. EST on 7/4/2014.) Other cities may reschedule their fireworks at a later time or may have already rescheduled their celebrations to a future date beyond this weekend.

Photo credit: DVIDSHUB / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)

Friday Fun: Independence Day

Independence Day is next week, and no, I’m not talking about the movie with Will Smith and the locust-like aliens. I’m talking about the national holiday that celebrates the day that our founding fathers declared their independence from Great Britain with one of the most profound documents in modern history on July 4, 1776. The importance of this document, which we all know as the U.S. Declaration of Independence, cannot be overestimated as the Declaration not only helped to establish one of the most powerful nations in the world but also established that all men (and women) are created equal and that everyone has certain unalienable rights, including life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. As a result, it should be no surprise that the celebrations that typically accompany this historic event often spill into the days both before and after the holiday, and if you’re one of the people trying to figure out what you’re going to do during the week of the 4th of July this year, here are some suggestions.

First, in order to make it through all of the events this week, you’re going to need to build up your strength. Fortunately, the Boston area has you covered, as there are a couple of events this weekend devoted to stuffing your face. In fact, if you’re into Caribbean cuisine, you may want to check out the Boston JerkFest. This festival, which is scheduled to take place at the Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology on Saturday, June 29, 2013 from 11:00 to 8:00 pm, will feature live entertainment and more spicy food than you have ever seen before. For more information, please visit the Boston JerkFest website.

If spicy food really isn’t your thing and you would really prefer to have a good meatball, the Center for Arts at the Armory in Somerville is hosting the Meatball Takedown on Sunday, June 30, 2013 from 2:00 to 4:00 pm. The Meatball Takedown is an all you can eat food festival that, as you might guess, will allow you to sample a wide assortment of meatballs. However, the Takedown not only features a whole bunch of different meatballs for the average attendee to eat but also features a meatball-eating contest in which a large group of people will try to cram as many meatballs into their stomachs as humanly possible. If this all sounds like something you just can’t miss, you may want to check out the Meatball Takedown website for more details and/or to purchase tickets.

Secondly, once you’re all fueled up and ready to go, you may want to think about taking the Official USS Constitution Turnaround cruise. The USS Constitution, which is the world’s oldest commissioned warship, makes a short trip to Castle Island every year on the 4th of July to fire off a 21 gun salute in honor of all the men and women who have fought and/or given their lives for our country. Now, while these cruises won’t actually allow you to sail on the Constitution itself, they will allow you to sail right beside it while you eat, enjoy music from the Middlesex Fife and Drum Corps, and listen to an expert discuss the USS Constitution. For more information and/or to order tickets, please visit the Boston Harbor Cruises Turnaround Spectacular website.

Finally, if you’re looking for something to do after the cruise is over and you’re not planning to head home for the local fireworks that most towns and cities have, you may want to head over to the Esplanade for the Boston Pops Firework Spectacular. The Boston Pops Firework Spectacular is one of the largest fireworks displays in the United States, and it is accompanied by a flyover, music , and guest appearances by a number of well-known actresses, actors, musicians, and bands. For more details on the event, which is absolutely free, please visit the Boston Pops Firework Spectacular website.