Illinois Amish Country

 On the Saturday closest before the 4th, crowds estimated in 2009 at over 30,000 people flock to Arthur for the Freedom Celebration.

Beginning on Saturday morning and continuing on Saturday right up to minutes before the fireworks, there will be craft shows, parades food vendors, a petting zoo, mechanical bulls, helicopter rides and much more to do in Arthur.

 Saturday morning begins with a special craft show downtown, followed by a big parade downtown at 1pm. Following that there will be a special live wrestling performance downtown, and other activities. You will have plenty of time to enjoy the downtown festivities before heading back to Jurgens park (about 4 blocks south) for the evening's activities.

 Head to the fairgrounds on the south edge of Arthur in the late afternoon to gain a good vantage point to enjoy the activities. Arthur offers a reason to come even earlier! Food stands, the end of a baseball tournament, an air show, skydivers, and one recent year, a "F-115 stealth fighter" fly over brought the crowd to it's feet. The Air Show will precede the fireworks and will feature the WW II T-6 aircraft and Skydivers from Mid-America Sport Parachute Club from Taylorville, Illinois with the final skydiver bringing in the American Flag. Back this year is Central Illinois Air from Mattoon offering Helicopter rides on site beginning at approximately 4:00pm with a cost of $ 20.00 per person.

But these are just a prelude to one of the biggest fireworks displays in central Illinois. A continuous barrage of aerial displays including some of the biggest shells available in the country fill the night sky. And when the "Rural Patriot" makes his ride across 500 feet or more of flowing ground displays, people cheer. /p>

Every Freedom celebration needs a parade and we have one! Arthur's 2010 Freedom Parade steps off at 1pm with line-up beginning at NOON at the Mennonite Church Parking Lot on East Illinois St. We'd love to have participate in our parade so print out our Parade Registration Form here.

Fireworks 2010 Event Maps page. We get quite a crowd for this event so you might want to plan ahead for parking and viewing locations. While the fireworks and displays are free if you walk in, contributions are taken as you leave if you enjoyed the show to fund future displays and to support the Arthur Rotary Club projects.  In addition, please note that many parking areas do have a specific charge to park. Check the Maps Page

Remember, Arthur's big Celebration is the Saturday Before the 4th...

July3, this year, 2010