Floats of parades past
The parade is the part of Canada Day festivities that many people look forward to most. And not just the spectators.
It’s a tradition for many local organizations and families to build and decorate a float on the back of a flatbed or wagon, and then get all dressed up with bags of candy ready to toss out to waving crowds.
Parades have been on hold for the past two Canada days, but there is no shortage of interesting floats from years past to enjoy, and maybe help inspire locals with themes and float ideas in years to come post-covid.
The Record archives holds decades worth of photo spreads from Canada Day festivities (or Dominion Day, as it used to be called) showing off some interesting floats and memorable events from the national holiday.
Among them was a photo of locals Susie Cunnington (Young) and Trudy Drew from a 1969 float called the Hatley Hat Boutique, set up by the United Church Sunday school group.
“I remember it like it was yesterday,” Young said, about sitting in front of the vanity on the float, wearing a chopped-up bleach bottle on her head.
“I’ve been trying to find that picture for years!”
“We always did either Sunday school or 4H, we had to pick and choose,” Young added.
And if she wasn’t on a float, she was at least in the crowd watching. Such a die-hard Canadian, Young gave birth to one of her daughters on June 28 and still made it to Hatley on July 1 for baby’s first Canada Day.
In the absence of activities and a parade this year, Young said Beulah United Church still found a way to celebrate with a bit of flare. The church is decorated to celebrate Quebec and Canada, to demonstrate pride in both identities, and cake will be given out on July 3 for Canada’s birthday, Young said.
“The church is still there, and active,” she said, even though it has been a quieter year than usual.
While young was captured in The Record as a budding fashionista in 1969, other Townshippers have some more embarrassing moments, immortalized in the paper, to remember.
Like say, getting caught with their pants down?
Yes, times were different in 1966 and some people went all out for a good parade float. Or at least they gave that impression.
Bing Maciver assured The Record that he and his friends were indeed still clothed, they were just covered strategically by clothe around the outside of their float to give the illusion of being naked for a nudist camp themed float.
“We used to put on in Bury parade nearly every year,” Maciver said. Not just nudist floats. Different themes, of course, but either with friends or later with the Ceilidh Society from Scotstown, Maciver was a parade float regular. “Usually, we would win a prize,” he said.
But not all of his floats were winners, Maciver explained. There was one year when he and his friends got burned by their idea.
“Farmers were always good about loaning their double wagons and horse teams for floats,” Maciver said.
One time he and his friends were looking for the vehicle for their next great float when a local farmer offered them his double wagon.
“It was brand new,” Maciver said, and the farmer thought, what better way to show it off.
Maciver and his friends set to work getting the float ready. The theme they had chosen that year was hillbillies, so they mounted a big cast iron kettle on the wagon, lit a fire and had traveling hoedown in the Bury Canada Day parade.
Well, when the party was over and they lifted the kettle off, they discovered it had burned a hole right through the framer’s brandnew double wagon.
“We offered to pay the damages,” Maciver said, “but he wouldn’t think of it.”
They didn’t ask the farmer for his wagon the following year, Maciver said. And they didn’t light any more fires.
Even on rainy years, with a layer of plastic or covered in raincoats, faithful parade participants have never failed to disappoint crowds in local towns during Canada Day.
Take a look at a few favourites from over the years.