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Clarence Quasquicentennial Parade

    Responsibility for the Quasquicentennial Parade was placed in the hands of the Clarence Volunteer Fire Department. Heading the Parade Committee, for the Department, were: Roger Thiele, Ray Steinke, and Gary Mohr. These men received invaluable information from the experience gathered by the communities of Lowden and Wheatland in sponsoring parades during their recent celebrates. Information was amassed on entries, routes, staging areas, classification systems and judging. The early weeks of 1984 were filled with countless phone calls and mailing of letters of invitation to participate to all potential entrants.

    Phase II for this committee was to use the guidelines they had prepared in their prior planning and find the best route, points of entry, and staging area available to …

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… successfully handle a parade of the magnitude of their expectations. After weighing all possibilities, they phased in the class and grouping plan along with a number system, to be issued the morning of the parade, at the registration checkpoint. Then came the publicity and advertising for this segment of the Quasquicentennial Days.

    As parade day neared, radio communications systems, for a primary and back- …

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… up were planned, assignments made for control along the route of the parade, and the staging area laid out in great detail.

    The day before the parade the primary communication system was field tested and proved unsatisfactory, so the backup control plans were called into play and …

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… received an excellent rating. Stakes and signs were placed the length of the route, in make up areas, and entry points. Early entries indicated a very large parade, but every contingency had been planned for just such a large list of entries. In fact, the only thing these men left to chance was the weather and the morning of the parade dawned clear, bright, and with every indication for another very warm day.

    The Grand Marshals for the parade had been selected and assigned cars and positions earlier. Those serving were the Raymond Doermanns, Willard Russells, …

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… and the Harlo Seatons from Holmes Chapel, in Crewe, England. Mr. Seaton was a former resident and he and his father, ahead of him, had published the Clarence Sun since 1901 until Harlo sold the business and moved to Jean’s homeland.

    Parade day arrived and, early in the day, a corps of firemen were deployed to check and place missing signs and prepare the reviewing stand at the Clarence Park. Still others manned entry and control points along the route. Costumed and decorated parade entrants arrived in great numbers with arrival times being early to secure better positions in the line of march. They arrived, with necessary transporta- …

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… tion, for participation on floats, mounted and foot units, bicycles and with nearly every conceivable type of motor power. They numbered more than two hundred thirty separate entries with many times that in numbers of people participating. The judges, in the 15 categories, had their work cut out of them with so many fine entries and they did an excellent job of judging and scoring all classes of participants. Judges were selected, for expertise in their classes, from the surrounding area and com- …

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… munities with one being present from San Marino, California. A listing of judges serving was as follows:

Car classes: Todd Wyknkoop, Junior Hegarty and Allen Hasselbusch
Horse classes – Robert Kintzel and Mike McDermott
Small motorized class- Steve Bixler and Rick Armstrong
Marching, musical and dancing groups-Karla Chapman and Gwendy Levsen
Children and character groups-Betsey Hensen and Marilyn Jackson

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Floats-Elizabeth Gleason, Jim and Judy Leeper
Antique farm machinery-Rich Kleppe and William Geadelmann
Antique fire equipment-Bob Peck and Joe Conway

The results of those entries judged winners in the various categories are as listed:

Antique Cars-1st; Model T by Merle Feddersen; 2nd: ’31 Roadster by Tipton Lions Club
Collector Cars- 1st: Cedar Rapids Corvette Club; 2nd: Model A by VandeBerghe
Horse Hitches: 1st: Clarence Co-Op and Felco Land O’Lakes with Double M Farms’ six horse hitch; 2nd: Total Livestock Concepts, Tipton, with Davidsons’ draft hitch.

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Horseback Groups-1st Clinton County Pony Express; 2nd: (tie) Knoche Farms and Mary Ann Kreinbring group
Small Motorized (3-wheel motorcycles)- 1st Jeff Licht, Lowden; 2nd: Rod Jones, Lowden
Marching Groups, Musical Groups and Dancers: - 1st Kaaba Temple Oriental marching band, Clinton; 2nd: Olin Rhythmic Pacers, Olin
Children (12 years and under)-1st Double, Aaron Koth and Wade Phillips, Clarence
Children (13 years and over)-1st: The Herring Clowns, Clarence
Character Groups- 1st: The Lambert Family; 2nd: Bob Mingst Family, Lowden

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Float Originality-1st: South Prairie Circle, U.C.C.; 2nd: Oak Hill School (The Schroeder Kids)
Float Theme- 1st: Clarence Savings Bank. 2nd Bennett Centennial Float
Float Humorous- 1st: Clarence Car Wash with X.P.; 2nd: Lange’s Grocery and Meats
Antique Farm Machinery- 1st: Antique tractor and steam engine, Old Threshers Org., Mt. Pleasant; 2nd: Farmall M and binder, Lavern Schwien and Bob Schroeder
Antique Fire Equipment- 1st: Wheatland Fire Department; 2nd: Mechanicsville Fire Department
Grand Winner, Judge’s Choice – Koch’s Lake, Catfish Float, Tipton