Saturday, July 7, 2018 at The 9th Annual Ocean City Jazz Festival
Trumpeter Derrick Gardner performs with the John Brown Quintet
2649 Island Dr, North Topsail Beach, North Carolina 28460
The Ocean City Community founded in 1949, was the only place African Americans could purchase coastal property in North Carolina, 15 years before the Civil Right Act. In 2009, to celebrate its 60th anniversary, a Fayetteville, NC jazz saxophonist and his accompanists were invited to provide entertainment on the porch of the Community Center. It was enjoyed by all in attendance, bringing in surrounding visitors to Topsail Island, NC and thus, the annual Ocean City Jazz Festival was launched as a vehicle to promote the history of the Ocean City Community.