7 July 4th Traditions from Around the Nation

This weekend, people across the United States will be celebrating the anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence with fireworks displays, picnics, and parades.  Some communities celebrate in other ways that you may not be familiar with.

Murrells Inlet, South Carolina: Parade of Boats

Many communities have a Fourth of July parade. Murrells Inlet has one as well, but it is held in the local creek as boats line up to be decorated, spectated, and appreciated. This year's annual boat parade will begin at 5PM, which is high tide. The annual event has been held since 1984. In recent years there have been as many as 125 registered parade entries, with more boats joining in at the last minute.

Mescalero, New Mexico: Puberty Rites

At the Mescalero Apache reservation in New Mexico, Independence Day celebrations include a coming-of-age ceremony for teenage girls.

On the first and the last days of the public portion of the ceremony, each girl runs four times around a basket filled with sacred items of the creation, symbolizing the four stages of life set by the White Painted Woman. Each night, the girls, godmothers and singers enter the Holy Lodge, or Ceremonial Teepee, where the girls dance and singers beat the rhythm with deer-hoof rattles.

The ceremonies are open to the public. The reservation also hosts an annual rodeo on July fourth. See a video of the ceremony.

New England: Salmon

The tradition of eating salmon on the Fourth of July goes back to the beginnings of the holiday in New England. The date coincides with salmon running thick in the rivers during midsummer in Maine and other New England states. In recent years, Atlantic salmon are declining, but New Englanders stay with the traditional meal; they just tend to eat Alaskan or Pacific salmon these days. What started as the tradition of "eating locally" is now just "tradition". If you'd like to try a little bit of New England in your holiday, here's a recipe.

San Francisco: The Mimes Return

Every year, the San Francisco Mime Troupe opens their performing season on July 4th with a free show. This year's production is called "The Wall." The experimental theater group was founded in 1959, and has performed in San Francisco city parks since winning an obscenity case in 1963. The San Francisco Mime Troupe does not perform silently or paint their faces white, but their productions are movement-based. See a a sample of their work in this video from their 2008 production "Red State".

Coney Island: Hot Dogs

It can be said that hot dogs are a traditional food across the nation on the Fourth of July, but in Coney Island, the Fourth of July means Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest. It's probably the best-known of all competitive eating challenges, and draws world-class eaters.

New Orleans: Essence Music Festival

More than a quarter-million people attended the annual Essence Music Festival in New Orleans last year. The event has been held annually since 1995, sponsored by Essence magazine. The music lineup for this year includes Beyonce, Lionel Richie, Al Green, Salt N Pepa, Anita Baker, Solange, En Vogue, and quite a few other stars scheduled for this weekend.

South Central Kentucky: Computer Trap Shoot

For about a decade now, a group of friends in south central Kentucky have used the Fourth of July as an occasion to have some fun with electronic equipment that is obsolete or beyond repair. They gather these items all year long, then take them deep into the wilderness of central Kentucky each Independence Day. The components are launched into the air and used for target practice, which is both a sporting event and a way to vent frustration over hi-tech workplace annoyances. See another video here.

How does your community celebrate the Fourth of July?