Float (parade)
Encyclopedia
A float is a decorated platform, either built on a vehicle
or towed behind one, which is a component of many festive parade
s, such as those of Mardi Gras in New Orleans, the Carnival of Viareggio
, the Maltese Carnival
, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
, the Key West
Fantasy Fest
parade, the Carnival in Rio de Janeiro
and the Tournament of Roses Parade
. For the latter event, floats are decorated entirely in flowers or other plant material. (source FBS INDUSTRIES)
when churches used pageant wagon
s as movable scenery for passion plays. Artisan guilds were responsible for building the pageant wagons for their specified craft. The wagons were pulled throughout the town, most notably during Corpus Christi
in which up to 48 wagons were used, one for each play in the Corpus Christi cycle.
The name is derived from the first floats, which were decorated barge
s that were towed along canals with ropes held by parade marchers on the shore.
The Smithsonian National Museum of American History features an artifact file on Vaughn's Parade Floats. It is a file of parade float pictures, designs and building templates. Vaughn's Parade Floats was incorporated in 1949 by Leroy F. Vaughn to manufacture commercial display and parade float supplies, Vaughn Displays Company was the world's largest manufacturer of float kits by the mid-1950s. Cyrus A. Krake, Vaughn's collaborator, designer, and co-inventor, donated Vaughn's parade float file and related materials to the Museum.
It shows how Vaughn and Krake applied the do-it-yourself aesthetic of 1950s leisure to community-oriented tasks of parade float construction. The customer chose a float design from a catalog arranged by theme and occasion, matching the picture of the finished float with the vehicle upon which it was to be built. By return mail the customer received a blueprint for construction of the underlying wooden framework, along with vinyl floral sheeting and trims in various colors to be applied as covering. The only things not supplied were lumber and labor.
The kit idea was rooted in Vaughn's and Krake's experience as professional float builders for the Minneapolis Aquatennial and south Florida’s regional parade circuit that began with Miami's King Orange Festival (the Orange Bowl parade) and concluded with Gasparilla in Tampa and Carnival in Havana, Cuba.
Floats for these parades were elaborate, custom-made creations that featured outriggers, animated figures, and lighting effects. And Vaughn's kits let everyone—in the largest city or the smallest town—master the techniques of custom float construction. Vaughn's parade float file offers us a window on community life as seen in the oldest form of organized human display—the parade.
Today Vaughn's Parade Floats has changed its name to Victory Corps - Flags, Floats and Events. Victory Corps still features a variety of parade float kits as well as its signature product Floral Sheeting. Floral Sheeting is colored vinyl petals attached to a sheet of colored vinyl used to cover parade floats.
first staged the Tournament of Roses Parade in 1890. Many of the members of the Valley Hunt Club were former residents of the American East
and Midwest
. They wished to showcase their new California homes' mild winter weather. At a club meeting, Professor Charles F. Holder announced, "In New York, people are buried in the snow. Here our flowers are blooming and our oranges are about to bear. Let's hold a festival to tell the world about our paradise."
And so the Club organized horse-drawn carriages covered in flowers, followed by foot races, polo matches, and a game of tug-of-war on the town lot. They attracted a crowd of 2000 to the event. Upon seeing the scores of flowers on display, the Professor decided to suggest the name "Tournament of Roses."
The climax of the movie Animal House features the protagonists from the title fraternity
surreptitiously launching their own float into a parade featuring legitimate entries from many of their rivals. The illicit float, in the form of a giant decorated cake
adorned with the words "Eat Me," later splits open to reveal the parade-destroying "Deathmobile" inside.
Vehicle
A vehicle is a device that is designed or used to transport people or cargo. Most often vehicles are manufactured, such as bicycles, cars, motorcycles, trains, ships, boats, and aircraft....
or towed behind one, which is a component of many festive parade
Parade
A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually celebrations of some kind...
s, such as those of Mardi Gras in New Orleans, the Carnival of Viareggio
Carnival of Viareggio
The Carnival of Viareggio is a carnival event yearly held in the Tuscan city of Viareggio, in Italy. It is considered amongst the most renowned carnival celebrations in both Italy and Europe.-Overview:...
, the Maltese Carnival
Maltese Carnival
Carnival has had an important place on the Maltese cultural calendar for just under five centuries, having been introduced to the Islands by Grand Master Piero de Ponte in 1535...
, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, often shortened to Macy's Day Parade, is an annual parade presented by Macy's. The tradition started in 1924, tying it for the second-oldest Thanksgiving parade in the United States along with America's Thanksgiving Parade in Detroit, and four years younger than...
, the Key West
Key West
Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida on the North American continent at the southernmost tip of the Florida Keys. Key West is home to the southernmost point in the Continental United States; the island is about from Cuba....
Fantasy Fest
Fantasy Fest
Fantasy Fest is a street party held annually on the last week of October in Key West, Florida.-History:The first Fantasy Fest was held in 1979 when two local businessmen, Tony Falcone and the late Bill Conkle, organized a party to stimulate business...
parade, the Carnival in Rio de Janeiro
Rio Carnival
The Carnival in Rio de Janeiro is a world famous festival held before Lent every year and considered the biggest carnival in the world with two million people per day on the streets. The first festivals of Rio date back to 1723.-Samba schools:...
and the Tournament of Roses Parade
Tournament of Roses Parade
The Tournament of Roses Parade, better known as the Rose Parade, is "America's New Year Celebration", a festival of flower-covered floats, marching bands, equestrians and a college football game on New Year's Day , produced by the non-profit Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association.The annual...
. For the latter event, floats are decorated entirely in flowers or other plant material. (source FBS INDUSTRIES)
Float history
Parade floats were first introduced in the Middle AgesMiddle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
when churches used pageant wagon
Pageant wagon
A pageant wagon is a movable stage or cart used to accommodate the mystery and miracle play cycles of the 10th through the 16th Century. These religious plays were developed from biblical texts and they reached the height of their popularity in the 15th century before being rendered obsolete by the...
s as movable scenery for passion plays. Artisan guilds were responsible for building the pageant wagons for their specified craft. The wagons were pulled throughout the town, most notably during Corpus Christi
Blessed Sacrament
The Blessed Sacrament, or the Body and Blood of Christ, is a devotional name used in the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Catholic Churches, Old Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran churches, to refer to the Host after it has been consecrated in the sacrament of the Eucharist...
in which up to 48 wagons were used, one for each play in the Corpus Christi cycle.
The name is derived from the first floats, which were decorated barge
Barge
A barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Some barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats...
s that were towed along canals with ropes held by parade marchers on the shore.
Vaughn's Parade Floats
It shows how Vaughn and Krake applied the do-it-yourself aesthetic of 1950s leisure to community-oriented tasks of parade float construction. The customer chose a float design from a catalog arranged by theme and occasion, matching the picture of the finished float with the vehicle upon which it was to be built. By return mail the customer received a blueprint for construction of the underlying wooden framework, along with vinyl floral sheeting and trims in various colors to be applied as covering. The only things not supplied were lumber and labor.
The kit idea was rooted in Vaughn's and Krake's experience as professional float builders for the Minneapolis Aquatennial and south Florida’s regional parade circuit that began with Miami's King Orange Festival (the Orange Bowl parade) and concluded with Gasparilla in Tampa and Carnival in Havana, Cuba.
Floats for these parades were elaborate, custom-made creations that featured outriggers, animated figures, and lighting effects. And Vaughn's kits let everyone—in the largest city or the smallest town—master the techniques of custom float construction. Vaughn's parade float file offers us a window on community life as seen in the oldest form of organized human display—the parade.
Today Vaughn's Parade Floats has changed its name to Victory Corps - Flags, Floats and Events. Victory Corps still features a variety of parade float kits as well as its signature product Floral Sheeting. Floral Sheeting is colored vinyl petals attached to a sheet of colored vinyl used to cover parade floats.
Tournament of Roses
Members of Pasadena's Valley Hunt ClubValley Hunt Club
The Valley Hunt Club is a private social club located in Pasadena, California, that is most noted for starting the Tournament of Roses Parade in 1890....
first staged the Tournament of Roses Parade in 1890. Many of the members of the Valley Hunt Club were former residents of the American East
Eastern United States
The Eastern United States, the American East, or simply the East is traditionally defined as the states east of the Mississippi River. The first two tiers of states west of the Mississippi have traditionally been considered part of the West, but can be included in the East today; usually in...
and Midwest
Midwestern United States
The Midwestern United States is one of the four U.S. geographic regions defined by the United States Census Bureau, providing an official definition of the American Midwest....
. They wished to showcase their new California homes' mild winter weather. At a club meeting, Professor Charles F. Holder announced, "In New York, people are buried in the snow. Here our flowers are blooming and our oranges are about to bear. Let's hold a festival to tell the world about our paradise."
And so the Club organized horse-drawn carriages covered in flowers, followed by foot races, polo matches, and a game of tug-of-war on the town lot. They attracted a crowd of 2000 to the event. Upon seeing the scores of flowers on display, the Professor decided to suggest the name "Tournament of Roses."
Floats in popular culture
Fraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In Latin, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in the United States, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
surreptitiously launching their own float into a parade featuring legitimate entries from many of their rivals. The illicit float, in the form of a giant decorated cake
Cake
Cake is a form of bread or bread-like food. In its modern forms, it is typically a sweet and enriched baked dessert. In its oldest forms, cakes were normally fried breads or cheesecakes, and normally had a disk shape...
adorned with the words "Eat Me," later splits open to reveal the parade-destroying "Deathmobile" inside.
See also
- LovemobileLovemobileA lovemobile is a popular name for a float. These lovemobiles are trucks with flatbed carrying sound equipment, a DJ or other live act, dancers and props, which is used as a central element at technoparades. The setup and decoration of a lovemobile takes place in the days or weeks preceding the event...
, a specific float with a sound equipment, a DJ or other live act and dancers, which is used as a central element at technoparades - Tournament of Roses floatsTournament of Roses floatsFloats for the New Year's Day Tournament of Roses Parade evolved from flower-decorated horse carriages. The carriages evolved into floats. The floats are required to be covered with plant material, living or dead. Originally Tournament of Roses floats were created solely by volunteers from...