Whether you live south of town in the Centerville and Washington Township area, or closer to the heart of downtown, Dayton offers plenty of activities to help you celebrate Independence Day.
If you’re a south of towner like residents of The Cottages and Twin Lakes West, the fun begins on Thursday evening. The 2014 Summer Concert Series, presented by the Centerville Arts Commission, is in full swing at the Stubbs Park Amphitheater, 255 W. Spring Valley Road.
On July 3rd , kick off the patriotic holiday with the annual Americana Concert, courtesy of the Centerville Community Band and Chorus, with a special cannon performance by the Fifth Ohio Light Artillery. This FREE concert series begin at 7 p.m. The amphitheater offers lawn seating only, so bring your blanket or chairs.
The Americana Festival will take over the City of Centerville on July 4th. This year’s them is “A Star Spangled Fourth.” The largest one day festival in Ohio, Americana attracts over 75,000 people. The city closes all the main streets to accommodate the parade and over 200 vendors of food and handicrafts. Festival goers can enjoy live entertainment all day, including street performers and a karaoke “open mic” event. Crafts and games for kids plus an antique car cruise in guarantee that Americana has something for everyone. 
Of course, it all wraps up with live music by the Curious Animals at 8:30, then fireworks at 10:00 p.m. They are staged at the high school, but you can spread a blanket or set up chairs almost everywhere along Franklin Street and enjoy the show.
Planning to go? Check out http://Americanafestival.org for all the details.
Downtown Dayton will put on the Lights in Flight Fireworks Show at RiverScape, just a block from Patterson Place. Marion’s Pizza is this year’s sponsor, and they promise food and entertainment beginning at 6 p.m. in the RiverScape Pavilion.
The Dayton Dragons take on the Fort Wayne Tincaps at 7 p.m. Lawn tickets are still available. When the game ends (usually around 9:30 or 9:45, the good people at Fifth Third Field open the north gates, allowing everyone to walk right onto the river front and view the fireworks show that won the Dayton People’s Choice Award for Best Fireworks show in the Miami Valley.
Ten p.m. is the scheduled time for Lights in Flight is a 25 minute fireworks show set to patriotic and popular music. Every bit of river bank is prime real estate, and everyone has a front row seat. Last year’s show drew over 20,000 people to downtown, so bring your chairs and blankets and plan to head for the river in plenty of time. Happy July 4th!
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