First Parade Grand Marshal To Head 50th Anniversary Parade

By Nancy K. Crevier

The 50th anniversary of the Newtown Labor Day Parade is also the 50th anniversary of participation for Lee Glover — minus one year, when he watched the parade from the porch of his newly acquired Main Street home.

Lee W. Glover, a direct descendent of one of Newtown’s original 11 founding families, grew up and lived most of his adult life in Newtown. He was a realtor in town, served as senior Borough Burgess, and was the owner/operator of Bus #21 for 25 years. From 1955 to 1972, Mr Glover served as chief of the Newtown Hook & Ladder Fire Company, and it was during his tenure as chief that the Newtown Labor Day Parade, then known as the Progress Days Festival, took shape. He served as the grand marshal the first two years, 1962 and 1963, and again in 1971.

“The first parade was really the idea of Stan Verry, who was with the Rotary Club and headed that first celebration,” recalled Mr Glover, Monday, July 18. “Dick Hibbard, a Rotary member and owner of Flagpole Fountain, came to me and said, ‘You know parades and that stuff. Do you want to organize the parade?’ With all of the fire chiefs at that time, it came naturally to us to do this kind of thing,” said Mr Glover. “We were trained to organize and get the job done efficiently, and the Rotary Club really wanted to get this thing off the ground,” he said. “I thought the Rotary idea for a parade was a great idea,” added Mr Glover.

Working through the chairman of the parade, the organizer served as grand marshal, too, in the early years. “Now, it is more of a figure head,” said Mr Glover.

In the early years of the parade, he said, each of the town’s five fire chiefs was in charge of a division. Scouts, emergency workers, and “a couple of town dignitaries” were included in the parade, along with lots of floats, the fire companies, and area bands. Along with Hook & Ladder firefighter the late Joseph Wupperfeld, Mr Glover served as manpower for the hand-operated antique hose car in several parades, or occasionally rode in the antique ladder truck.

“The fire chiefs did a lot of work getting bands, for instance,” said Mr Glover. “Certain bands would march each year with each of the different fire company divisions.” He was proud to wear the dress uniform from the 1955 Newtown 250th Anniversary parade each year, he said, a dark red uniform with white bib and red tie.

“Everyone complained about the length of that first parade that went down past Amaral’s,” laughed Mr Glover. Even though many of the marchers were firefighters, and used to marching in the regional parades, he does not doubt that today’s shortened route — turning up Glover Avenue — is very much appreciated.

“After the first couple of years, though, the committee wanted to include politicians from all over the area. All five of the fire chiefs resisted that idea,” Mr Glover said, and as a result, the fire chiefs’ involvement in the organization of the parade lessened in following years. The inclusion of outside politicians in the parade is the one change with which Mr Glover continues to disagree.

Disagreements aside, Mr Glover has missed marching in only one parade since 1962. “That was the year we moved to our house on Main Street, and I said that I wanted to watch the parade, for once,” he said.

In 1998, he moved to Woodbury, and then in 2005 to North Carolina, but every year he has returned to march or ride in the annual end of summer event. “I’ve come back from Woodbury or wherever I was, every other year.”

“I was very surprised when the committee this year called and asked me to serve as grand marshal again,” Mr Glover said. “It is a great honor, and I was very humbled to be asked. Without a single slowdown, I said, ‘Yes!’

“I spent most of my life in Newtown, and it is my favorite place. Newtown will always have a special place in my heart,” said Mr Glover.

He is hoping to see as many other “old-timers” in the 50th Anniversary parade as possible, and looks forward to leading the way. “And if I’m here and able, I’ll certainly be back for more,” he declared.