Easter parade: Difference between revisions
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===Commercial influences=== | ===Commercial influences=== | ||
In the 1870's, dry goods merchants and milleners began commercial promotion of Easter and the Easter parade. By the 1890's, there was no bigger annual event among retailers. | |||
==Other venues== | ==Other venues== | ||
Revision as of 16:58, 13 April 2008
The Easter parade is an American cultural event consisting of a promenade on Easter Sunday. Typically, it is an informal and unorganized event. The parade is most closely associated with Fifth Avenue in New York City, but smaller parades are often held in other cities. Persons participating in an Easter parade traditionally dress in fine new clothing, particularly ladies' hats, and strive to show it off to others. Starting as a spontaneous event in the 1870's, the New York parade became increasingly popular into the mid-twentieth century—in 1947, it was estimated to draw over a million persons. By 2000 its popularity had declined significantly, drawing only 30,000 people in 2008.
Ancient origins
History in New York
From the 1880's through the 1950's, New York's Easter parade was one of the main cultural expressions of Easter in the United States. It was one of the fundamental ways that Easter was identified and celebrated.
Religious influences
The seeds of the parade were sown in New York's highly ornamented churches—Gothic buildings such as Trinity Episcopal Church, St. Patrick's Cathedral, and St. Thomas' Episcopal Church. In the mid-nineteenth century, these churches began decorating their sanctuaries with Easter flowers. These displays soon became defining examples of style, taste, abundance, and novelty. Those who attended the churches began to incorporate these values into their own dress. In 1873, a newspaper report about Easter at Christ Church said "More than half the congregation were ladies, who displayed all the gorgeous and marvelous articles of dress,... and the appearance of the body of the church thus vied in effect and magnificence with the pleasant and tasteful array of flowers which decorated the chancel."
Having new clothes for Easter had deep roots in European religious customs. Sacred times called for special forms of dress to mark the holy celebration. Distinctive garb for Easter, like one's "Sunday best" and the special vestments of priests, for centuries had shown the solemnity and sacredness of the season. There is an old proverb that if on Easter Sunday some part of one's outfit is not new, you will not enjoy good luck during the year.
By the 1880s, the promenade had been clearly defined as an afternoon event, including visiting numerous churches to see their beautiful decorations. It had become New York's and the country's great fashion show of the year.
Commercial influences
In the 1870's, dry goods merchants and milleners began commercial promotion of Easter and the Easter parade. By the 1890's, there was no bigger annual event among retailers.
Other venues
See also
References
- ↑ Barnett, James H. (February 1949). "The Easter Festival—A Study in Cultural Change". American Sociological Review 14 (1): 62-70. Retrieved on 2008-04-13.
- ↑ Bergreen, Laurence (1990). As Thousands Cheer: The Life of Irving Berlin. New York: Viking Penguin. ISBN 0-670-81874-7.
- ↑ Collins, Ace (2007). Stories Behind the Traditions and Songs of Easter. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan. ISBN 0-310-26315-8.
- ↑ Schmidt, Leigh Eric (1995). Consumer Rites: The Buying and Selling of American Holidays. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-01721-2.
- ↑ Schmidt, Leigh Eric (Summer, 1994). "The Easter Parade: Piety, Fashion, and Display". Religion and American Culture 4 (2): 135-164. Retrieved on 2008-04-13.
- ↑ Shoemaker, Alfred L. (2000). Eastertide in Pennsylvania: A Folk-Cultural Study. Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Stackpole Books. ISBN 081170458-X.