Round Top Rifle Association
Independence Trail Region
The distinction of hosting the country’s oldest Fourth of July celebration west of the Mississippi may lie with a tiny town in Texas… and the Germans who settled it. Since 1851, the citizens of Round Top have put on an over-the-top Independence Day parade and festival. It kicks off now, as it did in the 1800s, with the firing of a Civil War-era cannon. Round Top’s brass band plays patriotic songs as a parade makes its way around the town square. Then everyone heads to the Round Top Rifle Association – a town institution since 1873. There, barbecue has been smoking overnight, games are set up for the kids, and band music plays. The festivities continue with the community dance, which can last well into the evening.