July 4th Weekend Festivities 90th Anniversary Ancients and Horribles Parade Announced

July 4th Weekend Festivities 90th Anniversary Ancients and Horribles Parade Announced

The Ancients and Horribles Parade will be celebrating 4th of July bigger and better than ever.  The Purple Cat Winery is teaming up with the Town of Glocester and Village of Chepachet to promote an array of "all ages" festivities during a weekend long celebration of the birth of the United States.

The Ancients and Horribles Parade first wound its way down Main Street in Chepachet in 1926 and, with the help of many dedicated volunteers, has continued to delight area residents and visitors throughout the years.

For its 90th annual celebration, committee members decided to honor all veterans and soldiers for their service and sacrifices to the United States. In place of an individual grand marshal at this year’s parade, they will recognize “every solider” by setting up a Missing Man Table for the duration of the festival. said Stephanie Westgage, vice-chairwoman of the committee in an interview. The Missing Man Table will be set up and manned at Glocester Memorial Park and on a float in the parade. Six empty place settings on the table represent the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard, and civilians who are missing in action, prisoners of war, fallen, or currently serving.

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Located along Rhode Island and Connecticut wine & antique trails, the parade features traditional Fourth of July floats, marchers, veterans and fire trucks, as well as often irreverent satirical displays commenting on political and current "in the news" issues. Nothing is sacred as parade marchers spoof local and national politics while thousands of visitors and locals line the streets.

July 4th, 2016Weekend Schedule:

Live outdoor concert Friday, July 1 at 7pm, Purple Cat Winery, 11 Money Hill Road, Chepachet

Purple Cat Winery Hours; Friday 6-9pm, Saturday 10am-9pm, Sunday 10am-6pm, Monday 10am-6pm. (Hours for different activities are subject to change) 
There is plenty of FREE parking.

Winery Festivities include;

Food trucks

Wine tastings

Campfire complete with marshmallows

Kids inflatable bounce house

Rock climbing wall

Face painting

Over 60 indoor and outdoor vendors and artisans

Ongoing entertainment and live music

Costumed characters

Three Day Carnival at Glocester Memorial Park Friday, July 1 thru Sunday, July 3 from 2 to 9 p.m.

A Missing Man ceremony will take place on Saturday, July 2, at 7 p.m., at the Glocester Memorial Field before a fireworks display at 9 p.m

Fireworks display Saturday, July 2 at 9 p.m Glocester Memorial Park. (Raindate Sunday July 3)

Road Race Monday, July 4 at 9am starting at the Chepachet Union Church. 
Race Entry Fees:

Glocester Residents under 18 = FREE

Glocester Adult Residents = $5.00

Non-Resident under 18 = $5.00

Non-Resident Adult = $10.00
(The course: 5.5 Mile Race/1.75 Mile Race/1.0 Mile Race For Under 12/0.5 Mile Race For Under 8, begins at Chepachet Union Church and goes through, Putnam Pike, Chestnut Hill Road and Pine Orchard Rd.)

90th Anniversary Ancients and Horribles Parade 4p.m. Monday, July 4
(Parade Route will proceed from the intersection of Routes 100 and 98, then east along Route 100 to Route 44, continuing to the Acote’s Ball Field near intersection of Route 44 and Tourtellot Hill Road, Chepachet)
 

“The Ancient Horribles Parade is a Rhode Island institution that draws thousands to Northeastern Rhode Island every Fourth of July weekend, lending itself as the signature event for a community and family oriented festival,” Pat Paolino Cruz, Event Producer "Chepachet has so much to offer visitors. They have created a weekend of events that would promote the area and the small businesses that make up the community during a time when both locals and visitors were already excited about the holiday tradition. This is the third large FREE public event created for Purple Cat Winery. The Christmas Village in December and Spring Festival and Cupcake Challenge in May were hugely successful. Each drew approximately 2,800 people to the winery and into the village itself. We are certainly getting the word out about these landmark events and people are coming from all over to enjoy what's going on here and in this beautiful area."

A new parade committee recently came together to bring a little zest back into the second oldest parade in the country. Members Mike DeGrange, Stephanie Calise, Mary-Beth DeGrange, Sheran Little, Ernie Little, Cecile Drouin, Kris Carlson Contrino, Kevin Westage, Judy Matteau and, Cathy Sorenson, as well as their families volunteer countless hours and shed lots of blood, sweat and tears to ensure everything goes off as planed. “It's a labor of love” Said Dan Ribeiro, Owner of Purple Cat Winery. We are happy to be part of a community where members are “believers and visionaries” of what can and will be in the future” for this wonderful event”.
There are limited food truck, vendor and artisan exhibit spaces remaining at Purple Cat Winery. For information, or to secure a space for the weekend, contact Pat Paolino Cruz @ [email protected] or call 401-261-3300. For parade and road race information, go toglocesterri.org/parade.htm.

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