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Bayfield's Fourth was a rousing success
Story and photo by Joel Millman ~ Herald Staff
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July
04, 1984
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DECKED OUT in all her western finery for the Bayfield Fourth
of July parade, Virginia Jackson, owner of Virginia's
Vallecito Lake Lodge, banters with the crowd as she rides down
Mill St. Wednesday
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BAYFIELD - It began with a plane
swooping low over the crowds on Mill Street and ended nearly
12 hours later in a burst of gold, red, and green fireworks
high over the football field.
In between, Bayfield played host to
more than 1,000 people who lined the main street two and three
deep Wednesday to see the seventh annual Chamber of Commerce
Fourth of July parade.
Despite the large number of floats,
campaigning politicians and other marchers, tradition was
upheld as the parade made a large loop and passed through town
twice, just as it has every year.
Rob Willard got festivities off to a
roaring start by "buzzing" the crowd in his vintage
World War II training plane.
Willard's aerial acrobatics were
followed by the children's parade in which The Tall Tales
Children Center took first prize.
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While some may have thought the Tall
Tales float defied description, 7-year-old Kelly Kendrick rose
to the occasion.
"It had pilgrims, it was stuffed
with napkins, and it had a rainbow", she said while
claiming her prize.
In the adult parade, the Bayfield Shur
Valu float, featuring a Victorian-era piano player and dance
hall girls, won first; The Pine River Valley Bank, a large piggy
bank on wheels, was second; and the middle school cheerleaders'
entry was third.
Town officials said the two-day
celebration, which began Tuesday night with a street dance, went
off without a hitch.
"It went great," said Mayor
Tom Bennett. "The parade was at least twice as big as last
year and we're already planning a better one next year. We're
hoping to get some bands, possibly the Air Force Academy Band if
they're available."
Bayfield Marshal's Sgt. Bill Faust said
there were only minor incidents over the holiday and no arrests
were made.
"Relieved?" Faust said when
asked how it had gone. "You might say we're pleased."
"It was a quiet Fourth of July.
There weren't any arrests. We had about 500 people here last
night (at the outdoor dance) and it was a pretty cooperative
crowd."
Unfortunately for the police, they
faired only half as well on the softball field as they did in
crowd control.
The Marshal's Office took the opener of
a double-header, beating the Upper Pine Valley Fire Department
15 - 12.
In the nightcap, however, a combined
police and fire department team lost to the Over the Hill Gang
12 - 10.
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Bayfield's 4th was a rousing ...
