OSWEGO, NY – Families and friends packed both sides of West Bridge Street for Oswego’s 46th Annual 4th of July Parade on Sunday.
It was a warm sunny day, but a light breeze made it perfect to sit by the side of the road and watch the parade go by.
The parade came up East Bridge Street at 1 p.m. and headed west passing large cheering crowds as it did so.
Many people have been attending the annual parade for years.
For some it is a tradition to arrive several hours before the parade and stake out their favorite spots using lawn furniture and blankets.
There is an unwritten parade law that you don’t disturb a location someone has already claimed.
Steve Stemple brought Ollie to the parade.
The six-week-old tiger kitten had her own bed with a blanket to hide under in case the noise got to be too much for her; and, she had her own water dish and treats.
“I just got her yesterday,” Stemple said. “She is having a great time. She doesn’t mind the crowd at all. She’s having fun playing with everybody.”
Representatives of Oswego Health’s Sun Patrol passed out sunscreen to help keep the humans safe in the sun.
The sun patrol was established in 1990 when Nurse Practitioner, Nancy Dowd, a Registered Nurse in the Emergency Department of Oswego Hospital at the time, noticed that there were many children coming into the emergency department with severe and sometimes second-degree sun burns following the Fourth of July parade.
Trucks, floats, and police cars were aplenty as well as a few marching bands and rock bands.
Among the marching bands were the pride of Oswego the Marching Buccaneers, the CNY Fire and Police Marching Band, the Towpath Volunteers Fife and Drum Corps from Macedon, and the Auburn Purple Lancers Drum and Bugle Corps.
Many groups threw candy to the crowd, which children dove after with gusto.
Dozens of American flags were also handed out to highlight the patriotic theme of the day.
There were also several vendors walking up and down the street selling SnoCones, balloons, and hotdogs to the hungry crowd.
To ensure the crowd didn’t get overheated, members of various marching units sprayed people along the route with cool water.
The celebration concluded Sunday evening with a fireworks display.
