POTTSTOWN PA – The most local of Pennsylvania celebrations for America’s 250th birthday, the 2026 edition of the Pottstown GoFourth! Festival, kicks off July 4 (Saturday) at 3 p.m. in Memorial Park on West King Street.
It marks a milestone year, organizers say. What began as a grassroots community effort has grown into one of Pottstown’s signature summer traditions.
The 10th season of the community festival features many returning favorites.
The Parade Starts Your Day!
Kick off your Fourth of July at the Pottstown Rotary Club Parade, GoFourth! planners urge. It steps off at 10:15 a.m. at the corner of East High and Adams streets, and proceeds on East High toward downtown to Manatawny Street.
The parade is sponsored by Switchpoint Foundation. “It’s the perfect way to begin a day of patriotic celebration, before heading to Memorial Park for GoFourth!’s festival.
Experiences That Make Memories
Among festival experiences expected to draw a crowd are free tethered hot air balloon rides. They are presented by Pottstown Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery Associates, and give the public the ability to take in the sights from above. Riders will enjoy what’s being billed as “one of the most unforgettable views in town.”
Plenty of family fun awaits at the festival too. There’s something for everyone at the Kids’ Zone, sponsored by the Pottstown Regional Community Foundation. It includes a juggler, face painting, giant bubbles with Grandpa Bubbles, and games.
At nearby Race Alley, sponsored by Pottstown Parks and Recreation, large inflatables let big kids (you know who you are) romp around as well.
Additionally, visitors can take home a free caricature by popular local artist Alan MacBain. They also can strike a pose and take a picture inside GoFourth’s 2026 Memory Frame Studio and Photo Op stops. Both are perfect places to snap up a storm for personal enjoyment and social media sharing.
There’s live entertainment too. Guests will hear a variety of music at the festival: Elvis classics and Americana, roots rock, retro-pop, alternative rock, and crowd-favorite hits. The Pottstown GoFourth! stage will keep music going all afternoon and into the evening. Bring a lawn chair, settle in, dance, sing along and enjoy a full day of live entertainment.
Festival sound production is provided by the Montgomery County Community College Sound Recording & Technology Department. It gives students valuable real-world experience while delivering professional-quality audio for the event.
There’s also much more: food trucks, arts and crafts vendors, expanded programming, and special tributes tied to the semiquincentennial celebration.
The day ends with a spectacular fireworks finale, sponsored by Precision Polymer Products. Organizers say it will be “the perfect ending to a day spent celebrating community, country, and 250 years of American history.”
A Distinctly Pottstown Twist
“This year really feels like a celebration of community as much as country,” says co-chair Amy Bathurst Francis. “Ten years ago, this festival started as an idea built by volunteers.” They believed “Pottstown deserved something special on the Fourth of July.
“Watching what it has grown into, and getting to celebrate America’s 250th birthday at the same time, feels incredibly meaningful.”
“This year feels different,” co-chair Amy Wolf acknowledges. “There’s a lot of emotion tied into it: 10 years of GoFourth!, 250 years of America, and a community that continues to show up for each other in a really beautiful way. We want people to feel that the second they walk into the park.”
Its “250th” theme leans heavily into America’s Revolutionary roots … but with a distinctly Pottstown twist. This year’s celebration introduces strong historical elements.
There will be a reading of the Declaration of Independence, recited by Justin B. Clement, historic site supervisor of Pottsgrove Manor. Clement will portray Col. Thomas Potts, an ironmaster who raised an “Associator Battalion,” a local regiment of volunteers.
His nephew, Capt. Nathaniel Potts, commanded the company recruited here in Pottstown. The men practiced drill in militia musters every two months, likely parading at nearby Pottsgrove Manor.
In September 1776, Potts’ Battalion mobilized in Philadelphia before serving two months in the “Flying Camp” under General George Washington in Perth Amboy NJ. The Associators served their time, engaging in light skirmishing with British forces before being rotated out in November 1776.
Festival-goers can interact with Col. Potts throughout the afternoon as part of the day’s living history programming.
Mr. Clement, as Col. Potts, will ride on horseback from Pottsgrove Manor on July 4 at about 6:45 p.m. He will be accompanied by the 13th Virginia Regiment, and Spencer’s Additional Continental Regiment re-enactor groups. Once in the park, Colonel Potts will recite the Declaration of Independence.
Portraying Pottstown’s Revolutionary Role
Organizers say the historical programming was intentionally added to help connect the community celebration to the national significance of the 250th anniversary. It also highlights the very real role people from the greater Pottstown area played in the American Revolution.
By bringing Col. Potts and the local Associators’ story into the festival experience, organizers hope attendees better understand that this history did not happen somewhere far away. It happened here, too.
“We wanted to make sure the 250th wasn’t just a logo or theme,” Francis said. “Bringing history to life in a way that’s accessible, engaging, and rooted right here in Pottstown makes the day feel even more special.”
Opportunities to Come Together
GoFourth! organizers believe the 250th anniversary party reflects the unity of those within and beyond the borough’s borders. “For one unforgettable day,” they suggest, “Memorial Park becomes the heart of it all … where neighbors become friends, generations celebrate side-by-side, and new memories are made together.”
“From soaring above the park in a hot air balloon, to hearing the Declaration of Independence read aloud; from giant bubbles and caricatures to a spectacular fireworks finale. There’s something to discover around every corner.”
Our entertainment reporting covers the arts and culture, shows, exhibits, performances, festivals, and community-related activities within, or that affect residents of, Montgomery, Berks, and Chester PA counties. Find more entertainment articles here. Also, see and join the Pottstown Arts and Cultural Alliance group on Facebook.
Keane Leads Pottstown Library Development, Communications