For nearly a century in Otsego County, the place to be on Independence Day has been the town of Springfield, home to the area's largest parade.
This year should be no exception, according to Maureen Culbert, who heads the parade's publicity committee.
``This will be our 95th year,'' she said Friday.
And if the weather cooperates, a good time will be had by all.
Nearly every year, thousands of people turn out in this town of about 1,400 residents to see and hear military veterans, school bands, local dignitaries and others march down state Route 80 on the nation's birthday.
``People go to celebrate the Fourth and meet friends they haven't seen in a long time,'' said Keith McCarty, former highway superintendent, who represents the town on the Otsego County Board of Representatives.
``I never miss it. I meet people I haven't seen in 30 years,'' he said. ``A lot of them come back to the area in the summer, and they know that's where everyone's going to be.''
The parade starts at 11 a.m., and after the marching ends, friends and neighbors will share a chicken barbecue on the grounds of the Springfield Community Center.
``It's big while it's going on, but if you got there a few hours late, you might not even know there'd been a crowd,'' said McCarty.
Every year, a town resident is honored as the parade's grand marshal. In 2008, Irene Fassett served in this position, and next Saturday it will be David Smith, said Culbert.
Announcing the parade as floats and contingents pass the reviewing stand will be Maureen's husband, Fred Culbert, whose voice has become a tradition.
``I've been doing it since '91 or '92,'' Culbert said Friday.
He was called into service by Jeannette Smith, former town clerk, when the late Tom Goodyear was not feeling up to par and asked for a substitute announcer.
Culbert was in good voice, and Goodyear, a driving force behind the town's Glimmerglass Opera, asked him to stay on.
When the first July Fourth parade queued up in Springfield in about 1914, the United States was still at peace, but an assassination had already triggered World War I, ``the war to end all wars.'' Horses, buggies and trains were the preferred modes of travel, money was backed by gold and Woodrow Wilson was president.
Nearly a century later, in a world of virtual reality, smart screens and nanotechnology, some things have changed beyond recognition, but the parade and picnic in Springfield are still going strong.
McCarty said the secret to the parade's longevity may be it's simplicity in an age of extravaganzas.
``The parade is big, but it has that small-town feeling,'' he said.
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