Alaskans have a long history of celebrating Independence Day or the Fourth of July. From the first American whalers and settlers to the residents of the U.S. territory and later the state of Alaska, it’s been a big deal. From my research for my novella Worth Her Weight in Gold, I learned about the celebrations at the Treadwell Mine on Douglas Island in the 1880s. They had races, tug of war, fire hose events, and ballgames. The same kind of thing happened in other gold rush towns and communities when residents took time to party and celebrate Independence Day.
Flash forward to current times, and Alaskans still get together on the Fourth of July. Modern celebrations include little towns like Chugiak, Douglas, Talkeetna, and Seldovia highlighting parades, food, and music. Larger towns like Anchorage, Wasilla, Valdez, and Fairbanks add bigger festivals. The Mount Marathon race in Seward is a legendary footrace up and down the mountain.
Alaskan Independence Days might have fireworks, but they’ll be hard to see with our longer days that time of year. The best time to see fireworks in Alaska is in winter celebrations like New Year’s Eve or Fur Rendezvous. But any place you visit is sure to be a fun time for the holiday!
Also, I’d be remiss not to mention the Freedom to Read this week. If you’re like to think more about that, you can read my previous post at https://www.lynnlovegreen.com/post/freedom-to-read or check out the new group Authors Against Book Bans at https://www.authorsagainstbookbans.com.
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