The Bay City Fireworks Festival is an American Independence Day festival held each year around the 4th of July on the Saginaw River near Veterans Memorial Bridge in Bay City, Michigan.
In addition to the fireworks display, the festival also…
The Bay City Fireworks Festival is an American Independence Day festival held each year around the 4th of July on the Saginaw River near Veterans Memorial Bridge in Bay City, Michigan.
01 · What it is
Living Tradition
Documented cultural tradition on record; family classification awaits an editor.
02 · Where & name
United States of America
Placed on record in United States of America.
03 · How it is doing
□□□□ (Not yet assessed)
Documented in open cultural records, but no cited field assessment of its current vitality has been added here yet.
04 · Proof & reuse
2 cited sources
Every claim links to a public record below. Free to quote, teach, and share under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Chapter Takeaways
HistoryThe festival originally started in 1962, by resident Richard Davis, and was funded by Bay City's Fraternal Order of Police at a cost of $2,500.
50th anniversaryIn 2012, the 50th anniversary of the Bay City fireworks Festival featured 50,000 fireworks shells, and a musically choreographed fireworks display that lasted more than 50 minutes, making it the largest fireworks…
RecognitionIn 2012, the Bay City Fireworks Festival made a national list of great fireworks shows, as chosen by voters.
Common Questions Answered on Record
What is Bay City Fireworks Festival in plain words?
The Bay City Fireworks Festival is an American Independence Day festival held each year around the 4th of July on the Saginaw River near Veterans Memorial Bridge in Bay City, Michigan.
Where is Bay City Fireworks Festival practised or documented?
Sources on this page place Bay City Fireworks Festival in United States of America.
What is the current condition of Bay City Fireworks Festival today?
□□□□ (Not yet assessed): Documented in open cultural records, but no cited field assessment of its current vitality has been added here yet.
How do I cite or share this Bay City Fireworks Festival entry?
Cite as: "Bay City Fireworks Festival." folkroom, https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bay-city-fireworks-festival, text CC BY-SA, with attribution.
The Bay City Fireworks Festival is an American Independence Day festival held each year around the 4th of July on the Saginaw River near Veterans Memorial Bridge in Bay City, Michigan.
In addition to the fireworks display, the festival also features several days of live concerts, a carnival, boat tours and more. 1
History
The festival originally started in 1962, by resident Richard Davis, and was funded by Bay City's Fraternal Order of Police at a cost of $2,500.
In 1982, the show was moved from a one night affair on the Fourth of July, becoming a weekend festival with three days of fireworks.
In 2008, the show included a barge in the middle of the river to make for a third launching site.
The fireworks display is usually produced by local fireworks company Wolverine Fireworks, which is based in Kawkawlin, Michigan, less than 10 miles from the site of the festival.
The fireworks were cancelled in 2020; however, during the COVID-19 pandemic. 1
50th anniversary
In 2012, the 50th anniversary of the Bay City fireworks Festival featured 50,000 fireworks shells, and a musically choreographed fireworks display that lasted more than 50 minutes, making it the largest fireworks display ever seen in Michigan at that time.
The festival was divided into three separate shows, on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. The Friday show featured the colors of area schools who helped raise money for that year's festival. The grand finale on Friday night featured the colors of whichever school raised the most money for the Fireworks Festival throughout the year.
While fundraising and setup for the festival is a year-round affair, actual set up for the fireworks display in 2012 required over 1,600 hours loading and arranging shells and wires. The shows were all choreographed to music, which were broadcast via speakers set up at Wenonah Park on the Saginaw River's east bank, and Veterans Memorial Park on the river's west bank. Music were broadcast over the radio on 94.5 F.M.
Performers included Bull Honkey Deluxe, Jedi Mind Trip, The Magic Bus, and Steel Wheels. 1
Recognition
In 2012, the Bay City Fireworks Festival made a national list of great fireworks shows, as chosen by voters. 1
The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bay City Fireworks Festival”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. 1
Bay City Fireworks Festival is American Independence Day festival held each year around the 4th of July in Bay City, Michigan, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition. 2
The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation. 2
