July 4th 2024 Fireworks, Events Around Middletown

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — Independence Day is fast approaching, so it's time to find out where you can celebrate in and around Middletown and the area. Events include fireworks, festivals and other Fourth of July fun.

To help you fit it all in on your 4th of July calendar, Patch has put together a guide to what’s going on in Middletown and the surrounding areas.

July 4 festivities for 2024:

Matawan fireworks on June 29: Starting at 6 p.m. at Lake Lefferts Lakefront Park, Ravine Dr, Matawan, NJ, 07747

Matawan's Independence Day celebration. Rain date is June 30. Kids activities. Inflatables. Food. Live music by Pezheads. Fireworks go off when it gets dark. Ravine Drive at Lake Lefferts Park.

Aberdeen fireworks on July 2: Veteran's Memorial Park, Lakeshore Dr, Keyport, NJ, 07735

Aberdeen's Independence Day Extravaganza (Rain Date July 12)Tuesday, July 2 6-10 p.m. Held at Veterans Memorial Park, Ocean Boulevard and Lakeshore Drive Keyport, NJ 07735 Come for a spray park, food trucks, live music, swimming in the bay and so much more.

Hazlet fireworks on July 3: Join us for the annual Hazlet Independence Fireworks Show from Veterans Park at 1776 Union Ave. Rain date is July 5. DJ and Food trucks beginning at 6 p.m. Bring chairs.

Riverview Medical Center Foundation hosts annual fireworks on the Navesink on July 3: The Hackensack Meridian Riverview Medical Center Foundation Board of Trustees is coming together for another year to host the annual fireworks display that will light up the night sky above Red Bank on Wednesday, July 3.

As is tradition, the event will be held at the DiPiero home on the Navesink River and will kick off at 6:30 p.m. with the fireworks display beginning between 9:15 and 9:30 p.m. The fireworks will be visible from a variety of locations along the Navesink River and by boat near the Oceanic Bridge.

The family-friendly event will include a variety of food options, including food trucks, and guests will enjoy front row seats to the fireworks show.

Tickets to the annual Family Fireworks on the Navesink are required and can be purchased at GiveHMH.org/RMCFireworks. To inquire about sponsorship opportunities, please email Hilary Cohen at [email protected].

The annual fundraiser to benefit Hackensack Meridian Riverview Medical Center will go towards designing and expanding Riverview’s Emergency Department, as well as its oncology care by adding a new inpatient unit with 20 private patient rooms.

Pier Village fireworks in Long Branch on July 4: Oceanfest 2024 in Pier Village in Long Branch. 1-10 p.m. come to the beach, live music, dining, family fun, walk around the shops, fireworks when it gets dark http://www.oceanfestnj.com/

Middlesex County Independence Day Re-Enactment at East Jersey Old Town Village in Piscataway on July 4:

Get ready to witness 'A Revolutionary Celebration', and watch history come alive right before your eyes as George Washington and the Continental Army reenact the celebration of the second anniversary of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1778, with cannon fire and a musket salute.

Join General George Washington, the Marquis de Lafayette, and Baron von Steuben for this annual celebration featuring a reenactment of the fue de joie (fire of joy) that took place on July 4th, 1778. Bring a blanket or a chair and enjoy a concert of patriotic themed music performed by the Libby Prison Minstrels and Mark Heter Band.

Visitors can also mix and mingle with historical interpreters, explore historic buildings, enjoy patriotic music by the Mark Heter Band, see a 19th Century printing press in action, enjoy children’s crafts, stone carving, and much more. This free event is open to the public.

WHEN: Thursday, July 4, 11 am–5:15 pm

WHERE: East Jersey Old Town Village 1050 River Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854

WHO: East Jersey Old Town Village and the Cornelius Low House are free and open to the public year-round, Wednesday through Sunday with living history interpreters onsite April through October and a packed schedule of special events.

Atlantic Highlands fireworks on July 5: 2 Simon Lake Drive, Atlantic Highlands Fireworks on the harbor starting at 9:45 p.m. Rain date is Saturday, July 6. Sunset cruise and fireworks viewing opportunity on the Navesink Queen, which will take guests on a leisurely ride across the bay and through the harbor from 7:30PM to 10:30PM. Tickets and info for the Fireworks Cruise can be found here.

Americans celebrate the birth of a new nation with fireworks, parades, concerts, and family gatherings and barbecues. Celebrations, though, predate by centuries the designation of Independence Day as a federal holiday, which didn’t happen until 1941.

During the pivotal summer of 1776, the pre-Revolutionary celebrations honoring King George III’s birthday were replaced with mock funerals as a symbolic break from the crown.

It was an exciting time in Philadelphia — the Continental Congress voted to break from the crown and, two days later on July 4, the Declaration of Independence was adopted by the original 13 colonies —New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland. Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia — to adopt the Declaration of Independence.

The first annual commemoration of the nation’s independence was in Philadelphia on July 4, 1777, while the Revolutionary War was ongoing. Fireworks have been part of Fourth of July festivities since the first celebration in Philadelphia.