The Huntington Beach, California Fourth of July Parade

June 27, 2008 - An annual tradition in the City of Huntington Beach, California, (also known as Surf City) is the Fourth of July parade. The parade is part of the Huntington Beach Fourth of July Festival which is the largest Independence Day celebration in Southern California. In 2008, in addition to the parade, the three day festival includes: an old fashioned pancake breakfast at Lake Park, the Surf City 5K run and Fitness Expo, a three day Pier Festival, and the Fireworks Show later in the evening. Many family activities and plenty of entertainment are available on Main St. and surrounding areas during the event.

For some local residents and out-of-town vacationers, the festivities begin with the early morning Kiwanis Club pancake breakfast at the park followed at 10 AM by the parade. This year marks the 104th anniversary of the largest Fourth of July parade west of the Mississippi. Each year the parade features a celebrity Grand Marshal however, this year there will not be a Grand Marshal. Instead, Community Grand Marshal Noble Waite, the city's oldest residing former City Council member, will preside over the parade. In past years, Grand Marshal's have included: Jayne Mansfield, Natalie Wood, Buzz Aldrin, Johnny Grant, and Lou Rawls.

Early on the morning of July Fourth, the night's quiet is awakened by the roar of bustling men and trucks closing off the downtown streets. Pacific Coast Highway, the main highway along the beach, is closed to automobile traffic at 5 AM. Many smaller neighborhood streets in downtown are also closed. An early morning stroll along Walnut St., towards Main St., reveals a colorful assortment of parade participants preparing themselves and their animals or machines for the upcoming march. The early morning, usually gloomy from a cloudy overcast, provides a kaleidoscope of subtle colors, exotic sounds, and dedicated people; the essence of the parade. A few hours later, under the bright light of the late morning sun, all the subtleties of the early morning spring to life on the asphalt stage.