Come join the parade in the charming town of Northeast Harbor, Maine

The charming town of Northeast Harbor, near my home in Seal Harbor, ME, hosts its own Memorial Day Parade every year, which I love.  It starts on Memorial Day morning at 10:30 sharp.  It’s a great opportunity to get reacquainted with both the year-round locals and the summer residents at the beginning of every summer season.  Come take a look at a bit of Americana.

Here are some old friends catching up.

This is the main street of Northeast Harbor - we love to shop here, sometimes meeting friends for coffee or an ice cream. There are several very interesting shops where I often find 'local treasures.'

There were two marching bands and local luminaries, veterans, and school children who marched that day.

Francesca waiting for the parade.  She and Shakey were not very well behaved - they barked at every other dog and were quite voluble.

Antique cars always come out on Memorial Day.  I believe this is an old Model A Ford in very nice restored condition.The Fords - Henry and Edsel - were frequent visitors to Mount Desert Island.  They were also activists in the formation of Acadia National Park.  It is fitting that so many Ford automobiles are on the Island - both old and new.  I even have an Edsel.

 

This driver was very casual and proud and friendly
 

Elroy, a local schoolboy, captivated the Frenchies.

another band wearing jeans

Sharkey had to be confined in a 'time out' stranglehold - she actually stopped barking when thus controlled.

 

There were three beautiful steeds bedecked in red, white, and blue - they marched proudly in the parade.

This entire group hula-hooped while marching!

Unfortunately, we did not make it to the barbecue, but it sure smelled delicious throughout the town

A very somber note was struck by these marchers who carried panels with the names of those brave soldiers who have died in Iraq.

More than 4000  American soldiers have died battle in Iraq

The fire departments always make a great showing - proudly displaying the fire equipment that hopefully will not have to be used.

Hook and Ladder 1

This youngster rode proudly with one of the firefighters.

Its so nice to see families like this gathered for the parade

Liesl, my assistant, waving an American flag.

The Pine Bough Book Shop is one of our favorite stops - great books, exquisite antiques, and fascinating memorabilia.

 

The plywood floor boards of the Model A - the owner said they had been made from the wooden boxes in which car parts were delivered to the Ford factories. I wonder if that is really true?

great dash board

the three horses

This is Lisa Hall of sea glass jewelry fame and her lovely daughter.

another view of the main street

There is always an ambulance or two in the parade.

A red, white, and blue swag decorating the back of another Model A.

Comments

[Joseph Brennan]

Martha:

Thanks for taking us to Northeast Harbor for your Memorial Day Parade.

I've been fortuante enough to always live in a town where they continue this important tradition. In fact, I used to march in the parade as a child with my local Cub Scout troop. What Fun!

It is such a tragedy that most young people today don't even know what this special Holiday means to so many. It is not just another "3 day weekend".

Francesca and Sharkey seem to have had quite a time. The shot of Sharkey in a stranglehold to quell her barking is priceless. Will that work on people, too?

As for the plywood floor in the Model A, that claim seems rather dubious; did they even have plywood back then? It looks like a rather rough replacement floor at best to me, but I could be wrong.

Just an aside to "Hardboiledegg" who commented that the riderless horse at JFK's funeral was named "Black Jack". Black Jack was also the nicname of Jackie's father, who was at that time already deceased: "Black Jack" Bouvier. From what I understand, Jackie saw to every detail of the funeral personally, so I doubt that was just a coincidence.

[miriam neeson]

The pictures are great and remind me of a July 4 parade we attended in Coupeville,WA a few years ago. We were just passing through, and the people in the town invited us to the Mayor's hot dog picnic.Just lovely!!
This experience inspired us to move to Fairhope,Alabama, another small town with lots of parades and friendly people. (I wanted to move to Maine or Washington state...cool weather,but my husband won). Fairhope is just beautiful and we love it. BTW, just got some bee pollen from Frank at downtown farmers market this Thursday.
Come to Fairhope for Mardi Gras...Great parades and we even have a pooch parade. The Frenchies will love it!!

[Alicia]

Hi Martha,
Thank you for adding pictures of the Northeast Harbor Memorial Day Parade. The picture of the "old friends catching up" is of my grandparents, Robert and Sheila Graves, both of Northeast Harbor. I was raised in NEH but have since moved to Portland. It was nice to be able to see the parade highlights. Thank you! Keep up the good work!

Alicia

[Noreen]

Maine is our favorite Martha. I love reading your blog as it heps me forget my chemotherapy. I would also love to get to your show in the city sometime but have difficulty attaining tickets. I wonder if you really get a chance to read all these answers to you by people as myself. Have a great summer. Looking forward to seeing the July shows starting July 14th. thx for all you do for people.

[Noreen]

Maine is our favorite Martha. I love reading your blog as it heps me forget my chemotherapy. I would also love to get to your show in the city sometime but have difficulty attaining tickets. I wonder if you really get a chance to read all these answers to you by people as myself. Have a great summer. Looking forward to seeing the July shows starting July 14th. thx for all you do for people.

[Dooryarder]

Have you ever visited the lovely home of Marguerite Yourcenar, the great writer, who made her home in Northeast Harbor for many years? It's a fascinating place -and a wonderful story. The house is called Petite Plaisance.