Fireworks Near Me: July 4th Events Around East Windsor For 2026

EAST WINDSOR, NJ — Fourth of July activities in East Windsor could have extra sparkle in 2026, the 250th anniversary, or semiquincentennial, of the Declaration of Independence.

The holiday falls on a Saturday in the middle of a three-day weekend, July 3-5. To help you fit it all in on your 4th of July calendar, Patch has put together a guide to fireworks and other celebrations in East Windsor and the surrounding areas.

July 4 Festivities:

What: East Windsor Independence Day Celebration
When: Friday, July 3, 6 to 9:30 p.m.
Where: Etra Lake Park, 9 Disbrow Hill Road
East Windsor, NJ is hosting its annual Independence Day Celebration and fireworks show on Friday, July 3, 2026 at Etra Lake Park. A large firework display to close out the night.

What: Fourth of July at Morven
When: Saturday, July 4 from 12:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Where: 55 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ 08540
Morven Museum & Garden, 55 Stockton St., will host its annual Fourth of July Festival featuring a dramatic reading of Frederick Douglass' 1852 speech "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?" by award-winning poet David Mills. The museum will be open free of charge, including two new exhibitions: "Five Independent Souls: The Signers from New Jersey" and "Northern Family, Southern Ties." Entertainment includes contemporary music from the Vintage Vibe Tribe and period music with John Burkhalter of the Practitioners of Musick. Community partners include the Princeton Public Library, Princeton YWCA, Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum, Not In Our Town Princeton and RevolutionNJ. Additional activities include garden tours, open archives with the Historical Society of Princeton, artmaking and crafts, facepainting, a chance to sign the Declaration of Independence, food trucks, lawn games and door prizes.

Princeton Battlefield State Park, 500 Mercer Road, will host an afternoon of USA250 programming including readings of the Declaration of Independence at 1 and 3:30 p.m., Continental Army drilling, a musket firing demonstration, 18th-century crafts, cooking demonstrations and tours of the Clarke House.

What: July 4th @ LEAD Fest State Fair 2026
When: Saturday, July 4 from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m.
Where: 1638 Old Trenton Rd, West Windsor Township.
The L.E.A.D. Fest State Fair at Mercer County Park runs June 26 through July 5, featuring rides, games, food and entertainment. Admission is $5; hours are 3 to 10 p.m. A special drone show is scheduled for July 4.

What: "E Pluribus Unum" Cultural Heritage Parade and Festival
When: Saturday, July 4, 11:30 a.m. onwards
Where: Trenton
The day's events kick off at 11:30 a.m. with a parade starting at City Hall, themed "E Pluribus Unum" — "Out of Many, One." A ceremony follows at 12:30 p.m. at the Trenton Battle Monument. The Democracy Reborn Multicultural Festival runs from noon to 6 p.m. at Mill Hill Park, and the Old Barracks Museum will reopen from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. following what Benson described as a year-long restoration project. The day wraps up with a Trenton Thunder baseball game and fireworks at 6 p.m.

Celebrations around the country recall not only the events leading up to the adoption of the Declaration of Independence by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, but also look forward and aim to make the 4th of July weekend a massive, multigenerational cultural moment focused on community connections and charitable giving.

America’s Block Party, an unprecedented coast-to-coast initiative, is one of the signature events of America 250, the congressionally chartered nonprofit overseeing the semiquincentennial celebration.

A Times Square Ball Drop, a rolling series of ball drops, timed to occur at midnight on July 3 in every U.S. time zone from Guam to American Samoa, is part of the “Giving 4th Broadcast Benefit Show,” creating a nearly 24-hour celebration of the 250th anniversary. It’s part of the broader “Giving 4th” initiative that aims to make and establish Independence Day the biggest annual day of giving.

A time capsule will be buried in Philadelphia to be opened in 2276 on July 4. It contains a carefully curated collection of letters and artifacts reflecting the leadership, institutions, and communities that shape the country today. It will include contributions from all three branches of the U.S. federal government and submissions from each of the 50 states, Washington D.C., and five territories.

Separately, the White House’s Freedom 250’s biggest spectacles are the Great American State Fair on the National Mall, running June 25 to July 10; the July 4 Salute to America Fireworks, also on the National Mall; “Sail 4th 250,” billed as the largest-ever flotilla of tall ships from around the world in New York Harbor; and Rushmore 250, an iconic 4th of July fireworks on July 3 alongside military concerts and live presidential reenactors.

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