July 10, 2015 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com • 5A
Don’t rain on the Fourth of July parade
It’s summer, after all!
D
espite what the calendar
tells you and what the sun-
shine says, summer doesn’t
usually start around here until July
5.
That’s why there’s so much cel-
ebrating on the Fourth.
Yes, there’s a certain nod to the
theory of liberty, freedom and Un-
cle Sam, but, locally it’s summer
that everyone is excited about.
In fact, it’s an inside joke around
here: We don’t really get summer
until after the parade.
But what a lead up to summer
do we offer on the North Coast!
It’s what a small town does best:
celebrate the Fourth of July, and we
have so many small towns along
our stretch between the sea and the
mountains, it’s extra special.
In Cannon Beach, where I live,
the locals are likely to parade down
Hemlock Street any time. We have
parades to pay tribute to Earth
Day and Sandcastle Weekend. So,
it would be a crime not to have a
Fourth of July parade.
And, boy, is it done right.
The police sirens signal the start,
and for the next hour, downtown
Cannon Beach is red, white and
blue pandemonium. It’s not time to
stay home: Everyone comes out for
the parade, either to cheer it on or to
be in it. There’s even room in line
for pets.
Dressed-up bicycles mingle
with À ag-carrying color guards,
which give way to À oats ¿ lled with
kids and balloons, just ahead of
Hula-Hoopers and jugglers, who
are followed by dancing neighbors
dressed in multi-print shorts and
orange clown wigs twirling their
lawn chairs, and after the crowd’s
applause, decorated wagons with
sleepy-eyed toddlers are pulled by
cheerful parents who are followed
by ¿ retrucks and fren]ied teenagers
in holiday garb who just joined the
parade for the fun of it.
The scene is duplicated in Sea-
side, Gearhart and Warrenton,
where the Fourth of July parades
also are classic small-town celebra-
tions.
I MPRESSIONS
B Y
NANCY
McCARTHY
Yes, there’s a certain nod
to the theory of liberty,
freedom and Uncle Sam,
but, locally it’s summer that
everyone is excited about.
But the parades are only a start.
In Cannon Beach, the ¿ re¿ ght-
ers cook and give away hot dogs,
and the women of the PEO sell
strawberry shortcake. In Seaside,
the Historical Museum holds an
old-fashioned ice cream social,
and there’s a drum and bugle corps
concert. A spectacular ¿ reworks
display on the beach caps the day’s
festivities.
But Warrenton isn’t to be out-
done by Seaside. In Warrenton, the
day starts with a community break-
fast for Uncle Sam (I never thought
about it before, but I guess Uncle
Sam does need to eat, doesn’t he?),
and later, classic cars are on display,
a motorcycle tailgate party is held
(do motorcycles even have tail-
gates?), kids decorate their bicycles
and play games and ¿ re¿ ghters of-
fer a free barbecue.
In addition to Seaside’s ¿ re-
works display, Astoria also lights
up the sky over the Columbia River.
The Fourth of July is one day
that the North Coast doesn’t forget.
Cynics might say that’s because the
events attract tourists and it’s one of
the best money-making weekends
of the year for businesses.
I, however, ignore those naysay-
ers, preferring, instead, to don my
rose-colored sunglasses and head to
the beach — following the parade,
of course.
EO MEDIA GROUP FILE
Many of the spectators of Seaside’s
Fourth of July parade were as laden
with holiday spirit as those in the
parade last year. Thousands of indi-
viduals lined the streets along the
parade’s route to catch a glimpse of
the excitement.
Crossing the Oregon Trail
Gearhart’s magical Fourth of July parade
Join the Seaside Public
Library Thursday, July 16,
at 7 p.m., for “Little Belle
Crosses the Oregon Trail”
with Nancy Bell Ander-
son. The event will take
place in the Community
Room.
This story is taken di-
rectly from the journals of
Arva]ena Cooper and tells
of the family’s ¿ ve-month
journey, from Missouri to
Oregon, in 1863. Life in
Missouri had become un-
bearable due to unrest and
lawlessness, so the young
Cooper family headed to
Oregon. They traded their
land for a covered wagon
and ox team, and along
with other family mem-
bers, began the perilous
trip west. Their daughter,
Little Belle, was only 16
months old when the expe-
dition began.
Arva]enea’s account of
their trip tells of monot-
By R.J. Marx
onous days traveling the
plains, learning to make
meals in uncomfortable
circumstances, childbirth
on the trail, dealings with
Native Americans, and
the challenge of caring
for a young child in harsh
traveling conditions. Their
new life in Oregon was ev-
erything they had hoped
for and Little Belle grew
up the oldest of 15 broth-
ers and sisters. She even-
tually became a medical
doctor and received her
degree from the Universi-
ty of Oregon in 1897. She
had a successful medical
practice and co-founded
The Dalles Hospital.
Author Nancy Bell An-
derson is a direct descen-
dent of “Little Belle” and
had the journals of Arva-
]ena Cooper passed down
to her. Anderson’s re-tell-
ing of her ancestors life
on the Oregon Trail is a
Seaside Signal
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Learn more about Little Belle
and her journey to the West
at a lecture at the Seaside
Public Library.
glimpse into the founding
of our state.
The Seaside Public Li-
brary is located at 1131
Broadway. For more infor-
mation call 503-738-6742
or visit www.seasidelibrary.
org and www.facebook.
com/seasidepubliclibrary.
The Gearhart Fourth
of July parade is a phe-
nomenon — this tiny city
of only 1,500 swells with
thousands of visitors ded-
icated to celebrating the
American spirit. This year,
with the sun shining and
perfect temps, for urban
visitors and small-town
parade-goers alike this
was the ultimate destina-
tion. They lined up near
McMenamin’s and made
their way up Marion Ave-
nue, with children throw-
ing taffy and candies into
the crowd. Surreys and
trikes and Captain Ameri-
ca marched by, along with
the crowd-pleasing Tiki
bar À oat and rescue dog
brigades. Bob McEwan, at
92, the patriarch of Gear-
hart, was accompanied by
his great-grandson Ed-
die and black Labrador
retriever Pearl, riding in
the cart behind Pancho,
the proud red-white-and-
blue bedecked donkey.
The parade rounded left
onto Paci¿ c Way, where
crowds lined the row,
and some spectators even
found perches among the
shingles of local build-
ings. At the Gearhart
Market, the line was eight
deep for cold drinks and
snacks. Down the road
the ¿ re station hosted a
July Fourth hot dog feast,
with ¿ re¿ ghters serving
up the fare and cold bot-
tles of water available
free. What happened next
was a townwide celebra-
tion, as gatherings were to
be found on nearly every
porch in town.
Deaths
June 25, 2015
FULWILER, Kathleen D.
(Markstrom), 75, of Tolovana
Park, died at home. Services
are pending. Hughes-Ran-
son Mortuary in Seaside is in
charge of the arrangements.
June 26, 2015
CARUSO, Marie, 69,
of Portland, died in Sea-
side.
Hughes-Ransom
Mortuary in Seaside is
in charge of the arrange-
ments.
June 28, 2015
WITTE, Adele, 90,
of Seaside, died in Sea-
side.
Hughes-Ransom
Mortuary in Seaside is
in charge of the arrange-
ments.
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