July 4 events planned

Custer’s Old Time Fourth of July celebration will kick off Monday, July 3 and continue into the evening of Independence Day. The celebration includes events for people of all ages.
The festivities begin with an arts and crafts fair at the 1881 Courthouse Museum. The fair runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. both Monday and Tuesday.
Also on Monday is the children’s fair, which will be at Way Park from noon to 4 p.m.
Then, the veterans tribute street dance featuring the Full Gallop Band will be from 6-10 p.m. and will wrap up the first day of the celebration.
Independence Day activities kick off with the Kids’ and Patriots’ Parade. The parade begins at 10 a.m. after a B-1 Bomber flyover from Ellsworth Air Force Base down Mt. Rushmore Road. The parade route runs on Mt. Rushmore Road between 8th and 4th streets.
The arts and crafts fair at the 1881 Courthouse museum will also continue with the same hours, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on the second day.
From 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., there will also be a Patriot’s hot dog stand on Sixth Street for hungry festivity-goers looking for a quick bite.
Sixth Street will be designated at Patriots’ Alley for the day and will be open from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. There will be a variety of organizations set up for visitors to interact with.  
Starting at 11 a.m. will be the annual flag lowering and raising ceremonies at the Veterans Memorial at Washington and 5th streets. The ceremony will feature readings of Johnny Cash’s “The Ragged Old Flag” by local veteran Jim Hattervig, an explanation of the meaning of each fold of the flag and the playing of Taps to retire the colors.
The children’s fair at Way Park will also continue into the second day, but will begin an hour earlier for Independence Day at 11 a.m. and will continue until 4 p.m.
The celebration will go out with a literal bang as fireworks light up the city of Custer starting around 9:30 p.m., as soon as it’s dark enough. The fireworks are launched from Pageant Hill and can be viewed from many spots around town.
Music will also be played before the launch of the fireworks at Pageant Hill, which is located at 8th and Canal streets.