A glorious Fourth

It was a bit unnerving to read in Wednesday's Out of the Past column for July 5, 1906, that there were no special events -- not even any fireworks -- to mark the Fourth of July in Cape Girardeau 100 years ago. As reported in the newspaper then: "The only thing to break the monotony were the loud explosions along the streetcar route, caused by the scattering of certain chemicals along the rails and ignited by the traveling cars; during certain times, the continuous reports resembled the Boer War."

Streetcars no longer run through the city's streets, even though a new bus service is about to begin. But there were plenty of activities to mark our nation's birthday this year: fun runs, steamboat race, music, pageants and fireworks galore. In Cape Girardeau, the Libertyfest celebration was one of the best-attended events in recent memory, with the crowd estimated as high as 6,000 participants.

These events don't just happen. They require careful planning and follow-through. This is done mostly by volunteers who organize and coordinate for weeks in advance. Anyone who thoroughly enjoyed the Independence Day events -- and that would be most everyone -- owes a tip of the hat and a big thank you to all those behind-the-scenes organizers who put on a great holiday festival.

Thank you.