There won’t be the movie cameras, movie stars and crew that descended on Southport for last year’s fest—at least, nothing scheduled.
But this year’s N.C. Fourth of July Festival, which the riverside city plays host to, will have all the fireworks and other fun activities that drew those productions to Southport in the first place.
Where last year’s fest saw movie cameras rolling for feature film “Safe Haven” and HBO’s “Mary and Martha”—not to mention “Safe Haven” stars Josh Duhamel and Julianne Hough milling about the crowd—this year’s festival puts the spotlight back on old favorites that thousands come to Southport to enjoy.
The festival kicks off Saturday with the 35th annual N.C. Freedom Run and Walk, preceded by opening ceremonies at Waterfront Park, scheduled to start at 7:45 a.m. The day continues with tours of the Old City Jail and historic Chapel of the Cross at St. Phillip’s Church, a summer members’ art show at Franklin Square Gallery, and the wet and wild Firefighters Freedom Competition and Apparatus Expo, which sloshes Nash Street, behind City Hall, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
On Sunday, an opening concert and reading of the U.S. Constitution will be held on the Garrison lawn at Fort Johnston, starting at 5 p.m.
And on Monday, the festival spreads to Oak Island, where Beach Day activities include a farmers’ market and youth contests at Middleton Park, a sand sculpture contest on the beach strand, a skate competition at Oak Island Skate Park, and a shag contest and concert at the park, located at 46th Street and Dolphin Drive.
Closing out Beach Day are fireworks off the Oak Island Pier, starting at 9 p.m.
The festival continues Tuesday with the art show, the chapel tours and a quilt show at the Oak Island Moose Lodge. The N.C. Maritime Museum at Southport will also be open throughout the festival.
Arts and crafts vendors fill Franklin Square Park from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and food concessions will be set up along South Howe Street from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Children’s entertainment will be provided at Keziah Park from 9 a.m. to noon, and Tuesday also sees the start of live entertainment on the main stage at the foot of Howe Street. Live music starts at 1 p.m., continuing to 10.
Tours of the Old Smithville Burying Ground will be offered at 2. And a veterans recognition event will be held at 6 at the Southport Community Building. The Sea Notes Choral Society will perform a concert at 7:30 at Southport Baptist Church.
On Wednesday, children’s games will be held at 9 a.m. at Waterfront Park, where the American Red Cross will also be holding a blood drive from 9:30 to 2 p.m. The Brunswick Concert Band plays a concert at 3 on the Garrison lawn, and the grounds of Fort Johnston will also serve as the site of a naturalization ceremony for the country’s newest citizens. The ceremony starts at 4.
Voter registration will be offered at the Southport Community Building from 3:30 to 5, and a flag retirement ceremony will be held at 6 at the BB&T flagpole, located at the corner of Howe and Moore streets.
Independence Day on Thursday kicks off with a pancake breakfast at Trinity Methodist Church, and a flag raising ceremony will be held at 10:30 a.m. at the same flagpole at Howe and Moore.
Then, the parade, which starts at 11 and flows along East Moore and North Howe streets. A classic car show is held on Bay Street from 11 to 4 p.m., and the Cape Fear Yacht Club Commodore’s Regatta will dot the water with sails, the race getting underway at 2.
New this year, the Garrison lawn plays host to pro wrestling from 3 to 5. And the Southport Lions Club boat raffle drawing takes place at Waterfront Park at 9—just before the fireworks light up the sky.
A complete schedule of events can be viewed on the festival’s website, nc4thofjuly.com, which also includes area information, descriptions of events and other festival details.
