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Thousands soak up the sun at 47th annual Adams Morgan Day

[audio mp3="https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/2-admo-day-jal.mp3" hide_date="true" author="WTOP/Jimmy Alexander" title="Thousands gather for DC's longest running neighborhood festival in Adams Morgan."][/audio]

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For the 47th time since 1978, thousands of people packed Adams Morgan for D.C.’s longest-running neighborhood street festival.

Festival director Cheryl Hardy told WTOP that she was expecting 50,000 people to attend Adams Morgan Day.

“It’s a haven for togetherness, it’s a haven for diversity, and it’s a haven just to have a great time in the neighborhood,” Hardy said.

Along with a dance stage, there were three stages of live music, including a reggae stage.

“We haven’t had one since 1985, so that’s a pretty hot area,” she said.

Like most festivals, artisans and vendors were selling items at tables and booths, including the Marie Reed Bilingual Elementary School.

Nine-year-old William Kane said his school’s bake sale was raising money for school supplies, books, and field trips.

The fifth grader said they had a wide selection of tasty treats.

“We have brownies, cookies, lemonade, pink lemonade, pumpkin muffins, all sorts of stuff,” Kane said.

Adams Morgan Day featured a variety of performances across three different stages.
Adams Morgan Day featured a variety of performances across three different stages. (WTOP/Jimmy Alexander)

While there were many attending the festival for the first time, there were also those who have made Adams Morgan Day a yearly tradition.

“I was born and raised in the District of Columbia, so I have been coming to this thing long before I was associated with the court,” said Milton C. Lee Jr., the chief judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.

“You’re going to see a cross section of the city come together,” Lee said. “It’s not going to be about anything other than people just having a good time on a sunny Sunday afternoon.”

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