Discover Delmarva: Sharptown Fireman’s Carnival

SHARPTOWN, Md. — Along the Nanticoke River in Wicomico County sits Sharptown. A small, historic town of about 700 people with a tradition few towns can match: more than three weeks of carnival fun every summer, all to support the volunteer fire department. And this year marks a big milestone for the department: 100 years of service.

“It’s just a home feeling. There’s been a lot of people that come before me that have been part of the fire department, that have put their blood and sweat into this place to make sure the fire department has the funds to provide all the equipment we need”, says John Cooper, President of the Sharptown Volunteer Fire Department.

This year’s giveaways go big for the centennial milestone…a golf cart, a hunter’s package, a side of beef, even a $12,000 cash prize. And of course, there’s all the fun a carnival has to offer!

“We have games that are just for adult, games that are just for children. We have rides for everyone, and then we have bingo, if you like bingo. And then the best part of the night, who doesn’t like dessert? So you can go and get a nice hot funnel cake or a nice cold ice cream”, says Cooper.

But ask anyone standing in line, and they’ll tell you the real draw is the oysters.

Horace Showell of Seaford tells WMDT, “A lot of people love it. Every year they come out here just to get this oyster.”

For some, it’s their first time discovering a Delmarva tradition.

“I want to play bingo and just walk around and see what it has here… I like small carnivals'”, says Debbie Lee who visited the Sharptown Fireman’s Carnival for the first time.

And for people like Tracy Miller, it’s a homecoming that spans generations.

“Since I was a little kid. My grandparents raised me in Bridgeville… I was near, like, every day of the whole month of August when I was little growing up. Now I get down here maybe twice a year, but I’ll never stop.”