From the pages of the Ridgeway Journal, June 24, 1904:
The City of Ridgeway was preparing for the Fourth of July with a grand celebration which included performances by the city band, a parade, a reading of the Declaration of Independence, an address by the Honorable H. S. Hadley of Kansas City (who, according to the RJ editor, was “one of the foremost orators of Missouri and should be a good drawing card”) and an “hour-long concert by a chorus of thirty voices”. The afternoon’s entertainment included a number of races included a bicycle race, a goat race, boys’ foot races, a “Fat Man’s” race, sack race and wheel barrow race. There were other contests attendees could enter like the Oldest Couple, Heaviest Woman and a grand shooting match. The day ended with a grand fireworks display.
There were a few editorial comments scattered through the paper about the celebration. One was a hope that there would be no gambling during the celebration as “Gamblers are very apt to congregate at such large gatherings to ply their vocation. On such days good order should be maintained and no drunkenness allowed. Another note mentioned that “The Ridgeway band is practicing every night so as to be in good shape for the celebration” and one more: “A person might imagine some of these fine evenings that the celebration was in full force right then and there-judging from the amount of fire works and fire crackers being burned. So far there has been no serious accidents.”
CLOSING: Hope that you all have had a good week and relaxing weekend! Please be sure to send me any news items for the paper by Sunday evening! Thank you for reading!
