Independence Day Weekend Celebrations Set Across The Ohio Valley
Emma Delk Trending
Communities across the Ohio Valley are gearing up to celebrate Independence Day weekend and the 250th birthday of the United States of America. There are number of events planned throughout the weekend that are pulling out all the stops to celebrate the occasion.
Oglebay Park Resort has fun in the plans Friday through Sunday, with a big bang at the start. Oglebay’s Salute to Patriotism starts Friday with a full schedule. Families can head down to Schenk Lake to find an inflatable fun zone from 3-9 p.m. It includes obstacle courses, slides and large inflatables. From 3-6:30 p.m., D.J. Daner will spin family-friendly music throughout the evening. an Americana Skydiving demonstration will glide down from the skies at 5 p.m. And from 6-8 p.m., there will be a foam party fueled by fun music.
The band MSM continues the entertainment at 7 p.m. with an Independence Day concert and the night will end with a massive fireworks display.
The fun continues at Oglebay on Saturday with a Firecracker 5K race at 10 a.m., followed by an All-American Pool Party at the Crispin Center starting at noon. Along with music from D.J. Daner, a poolside barbecue, a patriotic swimsuit contest and a dads bellyflop competition. Sunday wraps things up with Surfs Up, a Beach Boys tribute band performing at 7 p.m. at the Oglebay Amphitheatre.
The City of Weirton gets into the act Saturday with a celebration that spans from the Millsop Community Center to Main Street to Edwin J. Bowman Field to the Weirton Event Center. An America 250 parade kicks things off at 5 p.m., followed by face painting, crafts, games and food trucks at Millsop from 6-9 p.m., inflatables, obstacle courses and more at Bowman Field from 6-9 p.m., and a car show on Main Street from 7-9 p.m. At 7 p.m. at the Weirton Event Center, a concert featuring Brownie Mary’s Kelsey and Co. and Joe Grushecky and the Houserockers leads into a fireworks display at 10 p.m.
Wheeling won’t be left out of the action Saturday. The Friendly City will celebrate Independence Day at Heritage Port, anchored by the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra performing as part of its Celebrate America Tour. The WSO will begin its performance at 8 p.m. Meanwhile, guests can enjoy food trucks and a beer tent as they hear the sounds of the symphony and its guest artist, tenor Edward Washington II. Washington has performed at the Metropolitan Opera, Chicago Lyric Opera, Detroit Opera Annapolis Opera, Opera Orlando and New York City Opera and has performed roles including Beppe in Donizetti's “Rita,” Robbins in Gershwin's “Porgy and Bess,” Pong in Puccini's “Turandot,” and Tamino in Mozart's “Die Zauberflöte.”
Across the Ohio River in Belmont County, both Barnesville and Bridgeport will hold Independence Day Weekend celebrations on Sunday. Barnesville’s begins at 10 a.m. at Barnesville Memorial Park with food and music and a fireworks display that night. In Bridgeport, the village will shut down Lincoln Street from the fountain to Hall Street from noon until that night. Among the activities will be live music, food trucks, basketball games, and a dunk tank with Bridgeport's first responders. Fireworks will light the night sky at dusk.