Fireworks/Epic Greenwell Event

So the fireworks were pretty fantastic! That is, after they got going. They were about an hour late getting started (just after 10pm). A few people nearby pointed out Bradenton’s fireworks, just visible to the north between the waterfront hotels on the bay. We knew things were getting started though. They made it pretty dramatically obvious by killing the power to all the park lights at once. It was very cool.
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A sign walked around by the Sarasota County Green Party during the fireworks show. They had an interesting flyer dicussing the Patriot Act — which stands to potentially erode the US Bill Of Rights (this will likely be the subject of a future post).
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A father and son play with sparklers.
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The same shot as the one above this one, this time using the night mode of my camera. In the foreground, that’s Dad on the left, Neil on the on right.
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The group went crazy with sparklers while waiting for the show to start. It was actually hard to breathe there was so much smoke.
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Glowing rings! 2 for $3!
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One of two dozen or so VERY LOUD fireworks which started the show.
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The finale. Quite impressive, from a pyrotechnical point of view. Often there were five or six fireworks exploding in the same second.
The main section lasted about 45 minutes and ended with a the whole sky getting lit up at once. Pretty great. I say “main section” because it got a bit funny near the end there. Most people thought they were over, but after about two minutes of silent skies, they lit off a few more for a minute, then two minutes of silence, then a few more. Dad thought something was messed up with their “fireworks computer”. I think there’s still a guy running around lighting these things off, and that they were staggering the end to control traffic. Less dramatic, yeah, but I bet it works well.
And so tomorrow marks the beginning of what I expect to be a two-day trip (it’s four hours, one way) to Stuart, FL. The Greenwell family came over to North America from England around five or six centuries ago. According to Dad’s research, tomorrow will mark the first time a North American Greenwell has contacted a Greenwell descendant who was born in England. So it’s a big event, from a genealogical point of view. Since I wasn’t/didn’t get involved in the research which lead to this meeting, it kinda feels like I’m driving four hours to meet a stranger at a Cracker Barrel restaurant. Which is, I guess, exactly what I’m doing. But it’s definitely going to be enlightening. Probably going to learn a lot about Greenwell history. Neat!
[Corrections, Jul 8: well, turns out the Greenwell family moved to North America in the 1800s, not ìfive or six centuries agoî, as stated above. Also, this was the first time Dad was meeting a Greenwell descendant from England. My original statement may well have been true, but we donít have a way to verify it just yet. 😀 Still, it was a pretty amazing experience nonetheless.]
[Edit, Jul 9: Added pictures and comments.].


Comments

3 responses to “Fireworks/Epic Greenwell Event”

  1. Mary Lee Avatar
    Mary Lee

    Hi
    My Greenwells came over in the 1600s. I don’t have the exact date, but John Greenwell was one of the early settlers of Maryland. He came from near the Wear River in Northumbria.
    Where did your Greenwell ancestor settle when he immigrated?
    Mary Lee

  2. Jack Greenwell Avatar
    Jack Greenwell

    Hi Mary Lee
    I know about the Greenwells who came to Maryland in the 1600s. I like to think that all the Greenwells are related as it is a rather unusual name, but so far we don’t have any data on our side of the family which supports this feeling. The earliest ancestor we know about is Richard who was born 20 Dec 1795, Birtley, Durham, England. His son, Isaac, was born in England and came to Sydney Mines, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada in the 1850s.
    Do you have a family tree, Mary Lee?
    Jack Greenwell (Krishen’s and Davin’s Father)

  3. Jenni Eisenberg Avatar
    Jenni Eisenberg

    Hello: Through my mother, Janet Gail (Greenwell) Dollar, I am a Greenwell descendent of Henry Nicholas Greenwell. He arrived in Hawai’i from England around 1850. He was instrumental in exporting Kona coffee for the first time outside of Hawai’i. Anyway, I believe this part of the family was originally from around Durham, England. My mother mentions visiting Greenwell relatives in England as a child. I have a more detailed history somewhere in my house but can’t find it just now. Anyway, just thought I’d throw that out & see if there was any connection to your part of the family. ~Jenni (Dollar) Eisenberg