Since 1814, New Harmony has celebrated Independence Day (also known as the Fourth of July) with gusto. The town's founders and first residents, the Harmonists (1814-1824), celebrated the happy coincidence that 300 of their members had arrived in America on July 4, 1804, the Independence Day of their new country. This was the only Harmonist holiday that the Harmonists invited outsiders to celebrate and as a part of the celebration, they shared their Harmonie beer with visitors. The next residents in New Harmony - Robert Owen's experimental community (1825-1827) - celebrated Independence Day with civic speeches and other festivities. Today, modern New Harmony continues to honor the birth of the United States with a special community event: the annual Independence Day Celebration at the Atheneum and Maclure Park.
Join us at the Murphy Auditorium (419 Tavern Street, New Harmony, Indiana) at 10 a.m. on Saturday, July 4 for patriotic music, a reading of the Declaration of Independence and a keynote address by a local citizen. Afterward, there will be a golf cart parade from the Murphy Auditorium to Maclure Park. Event attendees will be welcomed at the park with a community picnic.
Friends of the New Harmony Working Men's Institute
University of Southern Indiana and Historic New Harmony
The Kiwanis of New Harmony
Saturday, July 4, 2026
Starting at 10 a.m. in the Atheneum Theater:
11 a.m. Golf Cart Parade to Maclure Park
Community Picnic at Maclure Park