For those on the western edge of the Vineyard, the small but mighty Aquinnah Fourth of July parade tops them all. Beginning at the corner of Moshup Trail and State Road and heading up to the Aquinnah Circle, paradegoers gather each year at mid-morning to celebrate the holiday and their small town.
Children and adults spend days creating inventive floats, from the 4-H truck, complete with goats and a human driver holding a chicken, to all manner of trucks and classic cars.
On Tuesday morning, children and adults were decked out in patriotic clothes, setting up lawn chairs or standing atop rocks along the parade route.
Maura FitzGerald, an Aquinnah resident who said she has been attending the parade for about 15 years, arrived early for what she called “the best parade on the Island.”
Jeeps, first responder vehicles, pickup trucks, Land Rover Defenders and all manner of cars were hand-decorated and draped in red, white and blue. Passengers waved and threw candy from the truck beds.
Brett Flaherty, 6, said the candy was her favorite part. This year was her family’s fourth year in a row attending the parade, her mother Jessica said.
Georgia Quackenbos, who attended with Ms. FitzGerald, said she was excited to attend the parade for the first time after spending many summers in Aquinnah but missing it each year.
“It’s such a small, close-knit community,” she said. “So it’s such a cool way for us all to come together.”
Ms. FitzGerald and her husband Allen Carney also brought two other newbies to the parade — their puppies, Herve and Gilou.
“I always love this parade because I think it’s old-fashioned, like old times,” Ms. FitzGerald said.
Mr. Carney noted that his favorite part might be that it lasts only about seven minutes.
“Well, you won’t be bored,” his wife confirmed.
Heading down-Island to Oak Bluffs, another parade got underway on the morning of the Fourth. Stroller, scooters and bicycles held center stage at the annual children’s parade held in the Camp Ground.
Abby Buckley said she has been attending the parade since she was in a stroller. Today, an old hand at five years old, Abbey beamed from beneath her bike helmet, with pinwheels painted on her cheeks and glittering tinsel tied to her handlebars.
“We used every decoration we could find,” said Abby’s mother, Veronika Buckley. “It’s a smorgasbord.”
Despite her dazzling decorations, Abby’s focus was elsewhere. “The ice cream after,” she said.
For many attendees, including 10-year-old Isabel Waugh, the children’s parade is an opportunity to connect with the Island community.
“I’m excited that we get to see different families do different things on the Fourth,” Isabel said.
Wendy Peterson hosts a group of friends at her home in the Camp Ground every summer. The parade, she said, is one of the highlights.
“It’s all about the community — the wonderful fellowship here,” Ms. Peterson said. “The people return every year a little older, a little taller and a little cuter. It’s a legacy for young people, and it’s so comfortable, warm, friendly and inviting.”
Tara Congdon of Monrovia, Md. said her family’s Island roots go back to the 1930s, and she has been visiting the Island since she was a baby. She was accompanied by her two daughters: three-year-old Aislin and one-year-old Brighe.
“I’m excited to share this and other traditions with my daughters,” she said.
Brooke Bailey’s family bought a house in the Camp Ground this year, inheriting the previous owner’s bin of decorations, which Ms. Bailey’s 14-month-old daughter, Junie, now wore.
Elizabeth Masterson and Gregg Beloff’s children no longer parade but the couple returns every year to watch the new generations.
“We watch them go from carriage to wagon to scooter to bike,” Ms. Masterson said.
As the parade flowed around the Tabernacle, children who reached that last stage celebrated independence, training wheels-style, as they whizzed ahead of the crowd on their bikes to the ice cream at the finish line.
All eyes turn to Edgartown for the late afternoon and evening festivities. The parade through town begins at 5 p.m. and the fireworks by the Edgartown Light house blast off around 9 p.m.
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