SUMMARY: Civil war presentations, musical entertainment a big draw
Despite rain showers early in the day, Millersburg had what may be its most successful Independence Day celebration yet.
Games, entertainment and historical presentations drew crowds Saturday July 2 to the courthouse square until fireworks at dusk wrapped things up for the day.
Historic Downtown Millersburg Executive Director Tom Wilke said attendance for the annual event hit its peak around 8:30 p.m. with the Wright Patterson Air Force Band of Flights performance. Historical attractions marking the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War saw steady interest all day, Wilke said.
The Holmes County Historical Society put on a presentation of the Fort Fizzle incident to capacity crowds, and that was followed by a tour of the courthouse. We actually had to do an additional courthouse tour, it was that popular, Wilke said. The Civil War Roundtable did a fabulous job with a display of artifacts from the period. It was like a mini-museum on the courthouse lawn.
The event kicked off at noon and carried on until a little after 10 p.m. with the fireworks display. All activities were offered for free.
HDM events and promotions director Tara McColloch said the rain had her a little discouraged in the morning, but the day went on to exceed expectations.
It got off to a scary start, there were times when (Wilke) and I were walking around soaked getting things set up, McColloch said. We had a slow morning then a steady increase as the day went on.
McCollochs 12-year-old son Ian got a first-hand experience with one of the more popular attractions, assisting magician Tim Angeloni. Angeloni mixed in the crowds for two hours before putting on a stage show, performing illusions and a twist on the classic rabbit out of the hat trick.
He had a bit of both, some people laughing and some surprised, Ian said of Angelonis performance. He had a trick where you looked at a black and white swirl spinner, then looked up at his head. It has to do with the muscles in your eyes, it made it look like his head was growing. A lot of people laughed because they didnt know what was going on.
The Wright Patterson band performance was lead by a presentation by the American Legion Post 192 color guard. The cost of the days events were covered by fundraisers, sponsors and contributions from the Village of Millersburg, Wilke said.
McColloch attributed much of the days success to blending old favorites with new attractions.
People asked if we were bringing back the caricature artist from last year, and there was a steady line for him all day, McColloch said. We want to keep building on successes from last year, making it bigger and better.
