A shorter version of the Somerville Celebration worked well on Friday night as several hundred people showed up for a 5k run, car show, live entertainment, food and merchandise vendors and a giant fireworks show.

The original two-day event was rained out on May 3-4 and had to be rescheduled.

“We decided to do everything in one day,” said Mayor Darren Tucker, “but we had some concerns about attendance. We were afraid some people would forget that the celebration had been rescheduled. But as you can see that didn’t materialize.

“This is a fantastic crowd,” Tucker said. “We’ve got lots of families here, more than we expected, and it’s going to be a great fundraiser.

“All of the proceeds will go into our Courthouse Restoration Fund and will be used to help us restore the upstairs floor of the old courthouse. Of course, this wouldn’t be possible without the work of all of our volunteers. We deeply appreciate their involvement and support.”

“We accomplished all that we had hoped for prior to the postponement,” said City Clerk Regina Long.

The north lawn of the courthouse was filled with country music lovers, sitting in lawn chairs and on blankets as they listened to the Crosscut Band play and sing. The music also attracted line dancers from Priceville Palace.

Children flocked to a play area on the north side of the historic Somerville Courthouse where free inflatable rides as well as free popcorn and balloons were offered by Somerville Baptist Church.

A concessions stand operated by the Somerville Courthouse Restoration Committee had people waiting in line to purchase hot dogs, hamburgers and pizza. Tickets were awarded for each purchase made and prizes donated by local merchants were awarded to lucky winners at a drawing.

The evening was highlighted by a fireworks show presented by Rodger McClure. The show lasted 33 minutes.