Events

July 26: Canal Days Parade and Festival Downtown Middletown

Canal Days Festival – A Celebration of History & Community!
Downtown Middletown | Saturday, July 26

Step back in time and celebrate the legacy of Middletown’s roots at this year’s Canal Days Festival! It’s a full day of hometown fun, vintage charm, and entertainment the whole family will love:

11:00 AM–4:00 PM – Thunderfest Historic Car Show
Marvel at classic cars and hot rods as Downtown Middletown turns into a nostalgic showcase of chrome, engines, and automotive history. Canal Days Festival Vendors will be set up all day for the car show, parade, and festivities that follow.

5:00–5:30 PM – Canal Days Parade
Celebrate local pride with a lively parade featuring a canal boat replica, community groups, and more!

5:30–10:00 PM – Canal Days Festival at Swallen’s Lot

The celebration heats up with an evening packed full of entertainment and activities for all ages

Live Music Lineup
• KrisB’s Midnight Railroad
• Blue Moon Soup

Live Entertainment
Mystical Motion Dance Performance

Festival Fun
• Food trucks & treats
• Artisan vendors
• Family-friendly activities & games
• Historic displays and canal-themed fun

Come experience the perfect blend of music, movement, and community as we bring Middletown’s history to life with rhythm, flavor, and fun!

Get Involved

Canal
History

The Miami & Erie Canal is woven into the fabric and history of Middletown.   The ground-breaking for the canal occurred on July 21, 1825, in Middletown, Ohio.  The site is commemorated by the Miami & Erie Canal Boulder Monument located on property owned by Cleveland Cliffs at the corner of Verity Parkway and Yankee Road. 

Once completed in 1845, the 248.8-mile-long canal would stretch from Cincinnati on the Ohio River to Toledo on Lake Erie where it connected with the Erie Canal leading to the Hudson River in New York.  By 1832 over 1,000 passengers a week were using the waterway. Freight boats hauled farm goods, building supplies, and other commodities along the canal and throughout the region. 

The canal was a catalyst for economic growth and prosperity for Middletown and the surrounding communities including the establishment of several paper mills.   Importantly, the canal was also a vital route on the underground railroad as slaves fled across the Ohio River and headed further north to freedom and safety. 

The 1851 advent of the railroad in West Middletown led to declining use of the canal.  The Great Flood of 1913 permanently damaged the canal and further limited its use.  In 1929 the Miami & Erie Canal in Middletown was officially closed with a commemoration ceremony and a parade featuring a canal boat on wheels. 

The canal was eventually filled and paved over to create Verity Parkway.