Fireworks may get top billing on Independence Day, but we can't forget the 4th of July parade!
The Rodeo of the Ozarks parade begins at 10:00 on Independence Day at the Rodeo grounds in Springdale and will meander through town with horses, floats, and bands. Bentonville is holding a Kids Bike Parade on the Square.
The nation's oldest 4th of July parade is in Bristol, Rhode Island, where they will be holding their 230th consecutive Independence Day parade this year. Maybe. The annual celebration began in 1785, but it's not known exactly when the military exercises started traveling far enough to be called a parade. The firefighters got involved in the Patriotic Exercises at one point, and people walked together to watch the Patriotic Exercises, and one thing led to another. Town historians figure they had a parade by the early 1800s.
The Rodeo of the Ozarks is observing its 71st anniversary this year, and there was a rodeo parade held in 1946. Was that the first 4th of July parade in our region? Probably not, but the answer is shrouded in mystery.
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