Santa Claus parade
Santa Claus parades, also called Christmas parades, are parades held in some countries to celebrate the official opening of the Christmas season with the arrival of Santa Claus who always appears in the last float. The parades usually include themed floats, dancing or marching groups and bands playing
History
The Christmas parade is a direct descendant of late Medieval and Renaissance revivals of
Notable parades
Santa Claus parades are most common in North America.
One of the largest is the Toronto Santa Claus Parade, held annually in mid-November in Toronto, started in 1905 by the Eaton's department store. That year Santa arrived on a train and met Mr. and Mrs. Timothy Eaton, then walked to the Eaton's Downtown store. The first float was introduced in 1908 and consisted of one truck with a band to accompany Santa. The parade now has over 24 floats, 24 bands, and 1,700 participants, and is broadcast in several countries.
Peoria, Illinois has the longest running Santa Claus Parade in the U.S. The parade celebrated its 131st edition on November 23, 2018.[1] The first parade in 1887 consisted of boats and derricks sailing down the river as part of the new bridge construction. In 1888, Peoria held a parade through town, celebrating the completion of the new Upper Free Bridge. The following December, Frederick Block of the Schipper and Block Department Store (later Block & Kuhl's) sponsored a parade that followed the same route and featured Santa Claus. This created the concept of a department-store parade that was later emulated in larger cities. Various attractions in the parade through the years included fireworks, circus wagons, a calliope, live reindeer and numerous parade floats. The parade was first televised in 1958.
In Vancouver, the Rogers' Santa Claus Parade has also grown to be one of the largest, with 65 floats and bands. A special train also circulates through the parade, collecting donations for the Greater Vancouver Food Bank and the Lower Mainland Christmas Bureau. In 2005, the parade collected over 4,300 kg (9,500 lb) of food and 2,300 toy donations.
Gimbels Department Store in Philadelphia started its parade in 1920. The parade is now known as the 6abc Dunkin' Donuts Thanksgiving Day Parade and was formerly sponsored by IKEA and Boscov's. It is the oldest parade in the United States held on Thanksgiving Day as the older parade in Peoria is held the day after.
In New York City, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, famous for its giant helium-filled balloons, began in 1924, inspired by the Eaton's parade in Toronto, with Macy's employees in costume, and— a distinctively Roman touch— animals borrowed from the Central Park Zoo. The giant balloons made an early appearance, with Felix the Cat in 1927. The inflation of the balloons in the streets flanking the American Museum of Natural History the night before has become a traditional gathering for New York's Upper West Side.
Also in 1924, the
The
As part of its citywide Christmas celebrations, known as Gran Festival Navideño,
Elsewhere, especially in Commonwealth countries outside Canada, Santa Claus parades are usually known as Christmas pageants. The largest is the Adelaide Christmas Pageant, which was begun in 1933 and is held annually in November.
See also
- List of Christmas and holiday season parades
- Santa's Grotto– a faux cavern (typically in a department store) where an actor portraying Santa Claus would give gifts to children
- SantaCon – an annual pub crawl of people dressed in cheap Santa suits
- Cavalcade of Magi – a parade with floats carrying portrayals of the Biblical magi
References
- ^ "Peoria Santa Claus Parade 2018 LIVE on 23 November 2018". Peoira. Archived from the original on 2018-11-09.
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: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Top 10 things you didn't know about the Detroit Thanksgiving parade". Detroit Free Press. 28 November 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-11-28. Retrieved 2014-02-26.
- ^ "Realizarán desfile navideño con nieve artificial" [Will put on Christmas parade with artificial snow] (in Spanish). Notimex. December 15, 2011. Archived from the original on April 25, 2012. Retrieved December 19, 2011.
External links
- 128th Peoria Santa Claus Parade
- Toronto Santa Claus Parade Official Website
- The Santa Claus Parade Turns 100 Archived 2004-12-31 at the Wayback Machine
- Eaton's Santa Claus Parade, 1960 Archived 2002-01-09 at the Wayback Machine
- Eaton's Santa Claus Parade Colouring Books: 1951, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1956, 1960 and 1961 Archived 2005-12-21 at the Wayback Machine