At 104, Philadelphia’s Thanksgiving Parade remains as delightful as ever

It may not be the only big Thanksgiving parade on the East Coast, but it is the oldest and remains a happy yearly tradition for many families.

by Dylan Purcell

Published Nov. 23, 2023, 2:20 p.m. ET

For a few hours, towering cartoon balloons, marching bands, and shimmering dance troupes — not cars — dominated over a mile of Philadelphia’s streets. The 104th Thanksgiving Day Parade arrived to the delight of thousands of spectators.

Families in turkey-shaped hats trotted past cotton candy hawkers to find the best views. Others took the parade as a chance to tailgate before an afternoon of football, feasting, and naps.

The crowd included many parade pros who arrived as early as 5:30 a.m. to set up canopy tents, folding chairs, and tables to feed and shelter their family and friends from the elements.

Not that shelter was much in need. November’s morning air was cool enough for hot chocolate but mild enough for spectators to take in some sun. A few gusty winds didn’t give the balloon handlers much trouble.

“It’s actually beautiful out here,” said Kelly Wunsch, 48. “It’s usually freezing cold.”

Wunsch, from Gloucester City, said she’s been coming to the parade since she was a child. She guessed that, counting the years her father first attended, it’s been a 70-year run of parade viewing by generations of her family.

The tradition continues for her daughter, Tori Wunsch, 28, who snapped a picture of her 4-year-old son posing with a parading Stormtrooper. The character took a moment off from protecting Darth Vader to make the greeting, delighting her child. “He loves Star Wars and Baby Yoda. He’s obsessed,” she said.

Not everyone was adding to a decades-long family tradition.

“It’s our first time,” said Majo Mera, 26. She and her friend Augustina Vega, 26, were festively dressed in turkey hats from Dunkin’.

Vega, originally from Argentina, made the trip from Nether Providence Township in Delaware County. Her favorite parade moment belonged to the float with a turkey dressed like a pilgrim in a black hat and buckled shoes.

Her words were soon drowned out by holiday music pulsating from an under-the-sea-themed float. But perhaps the award for the loudest crowd-pleaser belonged to the Eagles drumline and pep band marching behind the cheerleaders. Back inside the 6abc studio, offensive tackle Jordan Mailata sang “Merry Christmas Baby” with R&B great Lady Alma.

The parade signaled the start of the holiday season to many and, at a time of rising costs, offered a free and fun reason to get out of a crowded house on Thanksgiving.

Peggy Conley, 58, of Wilmington, stood on a 6-foot step ladder.

“I carried this myself,” said Conley, who lugged the ladder over the Spring Garden Street Bridge from her parking spot near the Drexel University campus. She joked that her adult daughters and husband didn’t want to be seen with her while she carried it. The ladder was still no match for the towering Smurfette balloon that sailed by as she spoke.

Conley credited the ladder for helping her score a heart-shaped gesture from a Disney character in the parade who spotted Conley waving a stuffed Minnie Mouse doll dressed in Christmas clothes.

As the nation’s oldest Thanksgiving parade, Philadelphia’s parade has grown prominently since the Gimbel Brothers department store founded it in 1920 with a modest 15 cars and “with firemen pulling the wagons,” as 6abc’s Cecily Tynan reminded those watching the parade on television from their homes. This year’s three-hour spectacle wound from John F. Kennedy Boulevard and the Benjamin Franklin Parkway to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, where the celebrity performances were televised.

Sure, the A-listers were in town — Mr. Potato Head and Strawberry Shortcake balloons, Santa and Mrs. Claus, the 10-foot-turkey — but for some parents, the stars were their children and grandchildren who performed dance numbers, sang, or marched in a band.

The 85 high school students in the Pennsbury High School Marching Band kept in tight formation. With marchers dressed in orange, black, and white uniforms, this was the school’s 39th year performing in the parade. “It’s hard work, but it’s also a lot of fun,” said their director Chris Bygott.

Meghan Rush, 42, of Mannington, N.J., sat in the bleachers near the end of the route. “This is the big day. This is it,” she said. Her 13-year-old son and 10-year-old daughter sang in a children’s choir that included students from Mannington Elementary. “They get to be on TV. We tape it and they get to find themselves. So that’s pretty cool.”