Posted by: Lea_Marie_C_Paar on 06/26/2014 10:58 PM
Updated by: Lea_Marie_C_Paar on 06/26/2014 11:08 PM
Expires: 01/01/2019 12:00 AM
:
Grand Marshal and Goddess of Liberty for Columbia's 4th of July Parade
Columbia, Ca...The Columbia Chamber of Commerce is pleased to announce the 2014 Glorious Fourth of July Parade Grand Marshal and Goddess of Liberty. The parade is on Friday, July 4, at noon on Main Street in Columbia State Historic Park. The Parade Grand Marshal is Larry Baumgardner, longtime Columbia Docent, volunteer and engineer/architect/builder of the Columbia Diggins Tent Town. Larry has also participated in many reenactments in Columbia and has painted most of the signs around Columbia. Larry's dedication to Columbia is hard to match. The hours he has spent doing research in libraries all over California is testimony to his love for Columbia and the Gold Rush. We are very pleased and proud of Larry's election to this grand honor. Carolyn Prindle was elected the 2014 Goddess of Liberty. Carolyn works in Columbia and is well known for her fabulous costumes and her festive and patriotic spirit. She always gives out cookies during Columbia's special events. She and her husband Bill became full-time residents in 2002, but their history with this historic town goes way back. They spent their honeymoon in Columbia 51 years ago, and Carolyn visited frequently as a little kid. This will be the Prindle's 15th year participating in Columbia's Glorious 4th of July Parade, though Carolyn will be riding in a vintage automobile instead of marching this year, as befitting a Goddess of Liberty. Honoring a local woman as Goddess of Liberty was a Columbia 4th of July tradition going back to the nineteenth century, and in 2012 the tradition was resurrected....
 
The Columbia Chamber of Commerce welcomes all to march behind the Grand Marshal and Goddess of Liberty in its Glorious Fourth Parade. It’s short, and shady, and fun! Decorate yourself and your kids, your group, your pets (under 120 pounds), your bicycle, or your vehicle (vintage 1964 or older), and join the parade. You just might win a prize! Registration begins at 10:00 a.m. in front of the Fallon Theatre in Columbia, and the parade is at noon.
Come early for the best parking, and bring lawn chairs. The Independence Day festivities in Columbia State Historic Park begin with a flag raising and black powder musket salute at 11:00 a.m. An old-fashioned contest for the youngest kids is also at 11 - Find the Needle in the Haystack. Following the noon parade, enjoy a BBQ lunch and the Great Mother Lode Brass & Reed Band concert. Folks can also dance in the street, and try their skills at the many contests popular in the early days of Columbia. Kids relish the greased pole climb, and contests for all ages include nail pounding, watermelon- and pie-eating, egg relay race and egg toss, cake walk, and a five-way tug-of-war.
The parade and concert are free, and each contest will only set you back a buck. Immediately following the parade, enjoy the tri-tip BBQ on shady State Street. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children under 10 for a meal of tri-tip barbecued beef, baked beans, green salad, roll and chilled water. Proceeds of the day benefit the Columbia Chamber of Commerce in their work to put on many free events in Columbia State Historic Park throughout the year.
For more information, call 209-536-1672 or go to visitcolumbiacalifornia.com.
|
