Baltimore's annual Washington Monument lighting kicks off the holiday season

BALTIMORE -- The 53rd annual Washington Monument Lighting at Baltimore's Mount Vernon Place ushered in the holiday season once again. 

The event, hosted by the Mount Vernon Place Conservancy, featured 20 local food vendors, drink concessions, music, and more. The fireworks and light show was canceled because of heavy wind and a fire at Camp Small, a wood supplier on W. Cold Spring Lane.

The 200-year-old Washington Monument in Baltimore is the first major monument of George Washington in America.   

"It's the most exciting thing to see people happy and together and kind of experiencing the best of Baltimore and the spirit of the city," said Emma Loftus, the Associate Director of the Mount Vernon Place Conservancy.

Image Engineering put together the fireworks and light show, which didn't happen.

"Our crew has been wiring the show for about a week now," said Tim Small, the Director of Pyrotechnics for Image Engineering. "Here today we're doing the final quality control checks, making sure everything looks beautiful, they're going to fire where they're supposed to and we've accounted for the wind so we can have the safest show that we can put forward tonight."

The Peabody Brass Ensemble and the Morgan State Choir performed on stage.

"I love the musical performances," Loftus said "The Baltimore School for the Arts is just incredible, Morgan State Choir is absolutely spectacular. That is really cool for me to see, just the talent that this city has is wild."

The event map is available here.

"Community, getting together with our friends and neighbors and watching some music and fireworks," said attendee Hannah Brady.