Hadley 350th anniversary parade set for June 14
By Nick Grabbe
Staff Writer
Published on May 01, 2009
HADLEY - The 350th anniversary parade on June 14 will include about 90 groups, including 18 bands and 26 floats.
The parade will start at 1 p.m. and last between 2½ and 3 hours, said Norm Barstow, one of the organizers. It will start at the intersection of Route 9 and Mill Valley Road and end at the West Street common.
There will be a reviewing stand between the Hadley Farm Museum and Town Hall, with Scott Harris and Terry Warner acting as announcers. Organizers are still planning for public parking sites, Barstow said.
The 18 bands will include those from Hopkins Academy and Holyoke High School, two fife and drum groups, military bands and floats with music, said Janet Barstow, who's tracking the participants.
Of the 90 groups, 33 will be from Hadley, she said. Leading the parade will be Hadley police cruisers, a Hadley color guard, a stagecoach carrying resident John Koloski, the grand marshal, and the Hopkins Academy band, she said. About 150 Shriners will go last, she said.
Present and former selectmen will be marching, along with police officers, firefighters, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts and Smokey the Bear. Other participants will include Hadley fire trucks, the Lions Club, and the Council on Aging
The Boisvert, Wanczyk, Hartsbrook and Mapleline farms will have floats. There will be baton twirlers from Belchertown and fire trucks from Wethersfield, Conn., one of the towns Hadley's settlers came from 350 years ago.
Selectman Daniel Dudkiewicz, who works at Westover Air Force Base, has been asked to try to arrange for a flyover.
The parade is the most expensive event in the 350th anniversary celebration, with a budget of $80,000. The organizers are looking for 18 volunteers to help at the formation area, 10 on the parade route, and 14 near the West Street common.
Town officials are still considering a plan for emergency vehicles that need to go between Amherst and Northampton during the parade.
The parade will be videotaped, and compact discs will be available.
In other 350th anniversary news:
* A special section of the Bulletin on Hadley's 350th will come out on June 4.
* More than 300 photographs have been collected for a photo show that opens June 7, with judging to take place on June 6.
* Cathy Zatyrka of the Park and Recreation Department is organizing a decorating contest for homes and businesses between Memorial Day and July 4.
* New souvenirs available now include a reprint of an 1860 map of Hadley, T-shirts in three colors, and an Angel of Hadley shot glass. The souvenir shop at Town Hall is open Tuesdays from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. and Fridays from 1 to 3:45 p.m.
* The 350th Anniversary Committee is talking to a fireworks vendor about a possible display, but the date and site have not been determined.
May events
May events in Hadley's 350th anniversary celebration include:
* A tour of the UMass Hadley Farm at 111 North Maple St. this Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. and Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m.
* Farm tours on Sunday at Longview Farm, 172 Hockanum Road, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Hartsbrook School, 193 Bay Road, 10 a.m. to noon; and Wanczyk Evergreen Nursery, 166 Russell St., 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
* May 8: hike and nature talk, starting at main gate to Skinner State Park, 6 p.m.
* May 9: youth fishing at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife building, 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
* May 17: walking tour of town common led by Kevin Sweeney, 2 p.m.
* May 17: "It Hadley Be You" concert by New Valley Singers, 3:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church. $7.
* May 24: Memorial Day parade at 2 p.m., with refreshments afterward at the American Legion post at 162 Russell St.
* May 24: Antique tractor show at Long Hollow Bison Farm, 272 Russell St. Hay rides, petting zoo, farmers' market and hot-air balloon rides.
* May 29: Hike and history talk, starting at main gate of Skinner State Park, 6 p.m. Repeated May 31 at 9 a.m.
* May 30: Hockanum Schoolhouse tour and plant sale, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
* May 31: Galilean service at 6 p.m. at North Hadley Congregational Church.
