- Date
- 1996-07-04
- Kind
- Celebration
- Carried out by
- Beaver Island Chamber of Commerce
- Followed by
- Beaver Island holds its 1997 Fourth of July Parade and Fireworks
- Eras
- Modern era
- Concepts
- celebrationcommunitytourism
- Within
- Beaver Island
Summary
Beaver Island’s 1996 Fourth of July parade carried an “Outer Islands” theme, inviting floats representing each of the archipelago’s ten named outer islands. The Chamber of Commerce organized a full-day program of parade, judged categories, carnival, art fair, and fireworks, reported afterward as bringing “sunshine, a great parade, colorful fireworks, and many smiling children.”
Program
The June 1996 Beacon announced the year’s parade theme as the “Beaver Archipelago Outer Islands,” hoping for a float representing each of Hog, Garden, Whiskey, Squaw, Trout, High, Gull, Hat, Grape, and Pismire islands, describing the concept as touching “geography, history, nature, biology, zoology, government.” The July issue set the schedule: parade line-up at 11:30 am at the Beaver Island Rural Health Center (the Medical Center), start at noon, with judging in four categories — most original, most true to theme, most humorous, and historical — announced at the carnival immediately after. The carnival ran roughly 1:00 to 3:00 pm with an art fair, games, and hot dogs; fireworks were barged into the harbor at dusk. Volunteers for the carnival were directed to contact “Kate” at the Chamber office. At the carnival, a Mary Scholl painting of the village Main Street, viewed from the harbor, was unveiled at the newly opened Community House. The August 1996 Beacon reports the day succeeded: “sunshine, a great parade, colorful fireworks, and many smiling children at the carnival,” thanking both scheduled and unscheduled volunteers, “the carnival could not happen without you.”
Evidence limits
No individual float or category winners are named for 1996 in the held issues, unlike some other years; the August report is a general thank-you rather than a results list. No proceeds figure is given for the carnival or that year’s Trip-to-Ireland raffle.
Open questions
- Which floats won the four judged categories (most original, most true to theme, most humorous, historical) in 1996?
- Did every one of the ten named outer islands receive a float, as hoped in the June preview?
See also
Sources
- Announces "the 4th of July Parade theme, this year, is the Beaver Archipelago Outer Islands," hoping for a float for each of Hog, Garden, Whiskey, Squaw, Trout, High, Gull, Hat, Grape, and Pismire Islands; contact Chamber of Commerce or Parade Chairman Lisa Gillespie. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1996-06_Beaver-Beacon
- The held twenty-two-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1996-06_Beaver-Beacon
- Details the schedule: parade line-up 11:30 am at the Beaver Island Rural Health Center (Medical Center), start at noon, judged categories of most original/most true to theme/most humorous/historical announced at the carnival; carnival 1:00-3:00 pm with an art fair, games, and hot dogs; evening fireworks barged into the harbor at dusk; volunteer contact Kate at the Chamber of Commerce. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1996-07_Beaver-Beacon
- The held twenty-four-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1996-07_Beaver-Beacon
- Restates the Outer Islands theme and the list of ten named outer islands, with the same Chamber and Lisa Gillespie contacts. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1996-07_Beaver-Beacon
- The held twenty-four-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1996-07_Beaver-Beacon
- Reports that a Mary Scholl painting of the village Main Street "was introduced at the Independence Day Carnival," at the newly opened Community House. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1996-08_Beaver-Beacon
- The held twenty-three-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1996-08_Beaver-Beacon
- Reports "the Fourth of July celebrations brought sunshine, a great parade, colorful fireworks, and many smiling children at the carnival," thanking scheduled and unscheduled volunteers. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1996-08_Beaver-Beacon
- The held twenty-three-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1996-08_Beaver-Beacon
Added 3 August 2026. Recent changes
Cite this article
Beaver Island Archive, “Beaver Island Fourth of July 1996”, https://beaverislandarchive.org/events/beaver-island-fourth-of-july-1996/, accessed [date], citing Beaver Beacon, June 1996, "Eric & Dana Hodgson - Shamrock Outer Islands on Parade." (and 7 further sources listed on the page).
Last revised 2026-08-03. Fill in [date] with the date you read it — this page is static and cannot know that.
BibTeX for “Beaver Island Fourth of July 1996”RIS for “Beaver Island Fourth of July 1996”