Nestled within a shady grove of maple trees off of the Ohio River is a small old timey amusement park that features an open-aired dance hall, the Moonlite Gardens. The history of the property dates back to 1867 when a local farmer purchased the property to grow apples, little did he know at the time of the purchase that folks cruising the river on steamboats would be more interested in renting the land so their lavish parties on the steamboats could continue on land into the wee hours of the night.  Over time his property became known as Parker’s Grove and went through several changes and additions to what is now Coney Island. The open-aired dance hall, Moonlite Gardens is steeped with mid-west American tradition, a welcoming dance hall to host the 4^th of July, Yonder Mountain and Railroad Earth extravaganza.

The box office opened promptly at 7:30 PM and doors of the venue opened at 8:00 PM. Yonder Mountain String Band was scheduled to start at 9:30 PM but was delayed due to the fireworks. The fans started chanting and eventually Ben Kaufmann (vocals/bass) sauntered to the stage to announce a Happy 4th of July to everybody and let everyone know the Gardens initially said the band had to wait on fireworks to be over but it started to feel like a Samuel Beckett play so they thought they would come out and just “pick a little.” ...