The cold can’t stop the Philadelphia tradition of the Thanksgiving Day Parade

The fact that the Thanksgiving Day Parade felt more like the bitter cold Mummers Day Parade didn't stop Alexis McCormick and her family.

Darryl C. Murphy
John Mussoni

November 22, 2018

Most of the balloons remained grounded and only participated in the televised part of the parade. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
A gas powered heater keeps members of the Gibbons and Eggleston families of Drexel Hill, PA warm as they watch the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade, in Center City Philadelphia. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Low temperatures caused a smaller than usual turnout during the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade, in Center City Philadelphia. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Knoedels the dog watches a drum band march past during the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade in Center City Philadelphia. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
People wrapped in blankets watch from balconies as low temperatures caused a smaller than usual turnout during the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade, in Center City Philadelphia. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Woodside One Wheelers (WOW) of Woodside Elementary School from Topsham, Maine takes part in the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade, in Center City Philadelphia. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Children participate in the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade in Center City Philadelphia. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Children participate in the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade in Center City Philadelphia. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Cheerleaders and drum bands try to keep warm during the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade, in Center City Philadelphia. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Gritty helps balloon handlers during the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade in Center City Philadelphia. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Confetti is picked up by the wind as a group of clowns marches past the cameras at the Art Museum steps, during the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade in Philadelphia. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Streamers fill the sky in front of the Art Museum steps as performers take part in the televised component of the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Performers take part in the televised component of the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade in front of the Art Museum. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Performers take part in the televised component of the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade in front of the Art Museum. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Catie Turner, a 2018 American Idol contestant from Bucks County, performs during the televised component of the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade in front of the Art Museum. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Mr. and Mrs. Claus wave as they close the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)
Kids see the float carrying Mr. and Mrs. Claus roll past during the 99th annual Thanksgiving Day Parade in Center City Philadelphia. (Bastiaan Slabbers for WHYY)

The fact that the Thanksgiving Day Parade felt more like the bitter cold Mummers Day Parade didn’t stop Alexis McCormick and her family.

“It’s kind of like a family tradition for us,” said McCormick, 21. “We like to come out here to the parade in the morning. Have a good time. Even though it’s cold we’re all together.”

Parade watchers like McCormick were bundled up, gyrating, doing whatever they could to keep warm while waiting for the annual spectacle to come their way.

The 6ABC Dunkin Donuts Thanksgiving Day parade is celebrating its 99th year. It is the oldest such parade in the nation. When the parade began in 1920 it was known as the Gimbels Thanksgiving Day Parade, named after the department store on the east side of City Hall on Market Street. Gimbels used the parade as a way to kick off the Christmas holiday shopping season. Santa Claus would make a grand entrance at the end of the parade.

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WPVI-TV has broadcast the parade for more than 50 years. The station later took ownership of the parade when the Gimbels department store folded in the mid-1980s.

The parade route shifted from Market Street to the Parkway, and the Philadelphia Art Museum is now the backdrop for both the television entertainment and the grand finale.

The winds this year were as big of an issue as the cold. Controlling helium balloons required a little extra attention. But the cold didn’t impact one new addition to the 2018 parade as Gritty, the Flyers new mascot, made his Thanksgiving parade debut.

And while watching the parade on TV was warmer than bouncing up and down along the parade route to fight off the bone-chilling freeze, Courtney Grimes of South Philadelphia wouldn’t have it any other way.

She has a double reason for braving the cold. The 35-year-old was there to honor her deceased father by carrying on the annual tradition of visiting the parade that he started decades ago, and to support a friend working on one of the floats.

And as for keeping warm?

“I do have four pairs of pants on, two socks, Uggs, three shirts, and a jacket,” she said. “Most of me is sweating besides my hands and my head.”

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