This document is a ‘work in progress’. If you have any information to add,
please send us an email at ridgewoodfourthofjuly@gmail.com
| YEAR | GRAND MARSHAL | THEME | NOTES |
| 1911 | J. Calvin Bogert & His Mounted Staff | Glen Rock’s Float won First Prize | |
| 1912 | J. Calvin Bogert & His Mounted Staff | Parade over a mile in length | |
| 1913 | Mrs. C.B. Francisco and Miss Bopp led the procession followed by the equestrian division led by Marshall Bogert | ||
| 1914 | J. B. Hopper | ||
| 1915 | no parade | Dedication of the High School and an afternoon circus performance | |
| 1916 | no parade | -Parade of children from the High School to the YMCA/ -Public Dancing in the Plaza | |
| 1917 | J.B. Hopper & his aide R.T. Wilson | Liberty Bazaar yields $5600 for the local Red Cross | |
| 1918 | no parade | Victory Bazaar gross receipts exceed $10,000 | |
| 1919 | |||
| 1920 | Bernard E. Hopper | Saw dust was sprinkled on Maple Avenue for a dance floor during the Evening Pagent | |
| 1921 | Bernard E. Hopper with aide Eugene Bogert | ||
| 1922 | Bernard E. Hopper | Bad weather cancelled the fireworks | |
| 1923 | William W. Young | -Parade continued through the rain -The Elks Club Float won First Prize | |
| 1924 | Dr. H.A. Bonynge | 15th Annual Celebration 30,000 spectators at the parade witnessed 5 Civil War veterans and the first showing of Ridgewood’s new ambulance | |
| 1925 | Major John B. Hopper | -Ridgewood news headline included . . . “Splendid Police Work” -Trick mule escaped from the afternoon children’s circus | |
| 1926 | Major John B. Hopper | -Sesqui-centennial Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence/ -35,000 in attendance | |
| 1927 | Capt. C. Byron Lear | -One of the coldest July 4th’s on record -“Lindy” impersonator (a Ridgewood P.O. employee) thrilled the crowds | |
| 1928 | Capt. C. Byron Lear | -Rodeo program in the afternoon -Fireworks postponed due to a late afternoon storm which soaked the field | |
| 1929 | Capt. C. Byron Lear | According to the I.D.A. “general finacial cooperation was poor, the celebration barely broke even | |
| 1930 | Major Austin D. Smith | A Zeppelin, the “Mayflower,” was scheduled to give rides, but was delayed in Maryland due to a storm | |
| 1931 | Major Austin D. Smith | -Smaller celebration than in past years -Ridgewood News article called it a “fine little parade.” | |
| 1932 | Major Austin D. Smith | Rained throughout the Parade | |
| 1933 | Due to the expense of a large parade and fireworks display the celebration was scaled back – a short parade followed the flag raising ceremony and in place of fireworks, there was a band concert and dance in Van Neste Square | ||
| 1934 | no parade | Flag raising ceremony is the only scheduled event | |
| 1935 | Major Austin D. Smith | 25th Annual Parade Revived celebration complete with the traditional parade, circus and fireworks | |
| 1936 | no parade | ||
| 1937 | no parade | -Small flag raising ceremony -Fireworks presented despite the threat of rain | |
| 1938 | no parade | The Swiss Turners, a gymastics team, performed before the fireworks | |
| 1939 | Very loud fireworks rattled windows several miles away | ||
| 1940 | |||
| 1941 | |||
| 1942 | |||
| 1943 | |||
| 1944 | |||
| 1945 | |||
| 1946 | |||
| 1947 | |||
| 1948 | |||
| 1949 | |||
| 1950 | Col. Austin D. Smith | ||
| 1951 | Col. Austin D. Smith | ||
| 1952 | Roger O. Gerhardt | ||
| 1953 | Raymond Grignon | ||
| 1954 | Col. Austin D. Smith | ||
| 1955 | No Celebration due to a lack of funds | ||
| 1956 | Col. Austin D. Smith | Benjamin Franklin | |
| 1957 | Col. Austin D. Smith | ||
| 1958 | Col. Austin D. Smith | ||
| 1959 | Col. Austin D. Smith | ||
| 1960 | The Golden Parade | 50th Annual Celebration Antique Car & Model Airplane Meet followed the Parade | |
| 1961 | Col. Austin Smith | Warner Bros. filmed the entire parade in color for a special Community Chest benefit | |
| 1962 | Salute to the Astronauts | First time the theme was clearly depicted in all the floats | |
| 1963 | Col. Austin Smith | ||
| 1964 | Col. Austin Smith | New Jersey’s Tercentenary | -Rained before and during the Parade -1st Annual Drum & Bugle Corps competition before the fireworks |
| 1965 | |||
| 1966 | Hottest July 4th in memory | ||
| 1967 | Col. Austin Smith | Fireworks postponed due to rain during the Drum & Bugle Corps competition | |
| 1968 | Independence Day for All-Now and Forever | Chairman of the Parade reported disappointing donations and a general feeling of apathy about the celebration | |
| 1969 | New flagpole at Citizen’s Bank recognized during the Parade | ||
| 1970 | Red, White & Blue | Drum display prior to the Fireworks | |
| 1971 | America the Beautiful | Police Chief reports that the July 4th activities are growing too large for the Ridgewood Police Department to participte in as well as patrol | |
| 1972 | |||
| 1973 | |||
| 1974 | America — 13 to 50 | ||
| 1975 | Donald Stevenson, an ex-Villager | We’ve Only Just Begun | 65th Annual Parade |
| 1976 | William Pearston, a long-time Village resident who served for 36 years in the Ridgewood Parks & Recreation Deptartment | American We Salute You | Theme signals the start of the Bicentennial year in the Village |
| 1977 | Herb Bennett | New Jersey, the Garden State | Celebration marred by fireworks throwing incidents |
| 1978 | Jeanett Taylor | A Glorious Fourth | Coldest, wettest July 4th on record |
| 1979 | Mr. & Mrs. John Camblin | Salute to Progress |   |
| 1980 | Edward Madama (A 60 year member of the American Legion who served in the Mexican Border conflict) | A Salute to Veterans | 70th Annual Parade |
| 1981 | Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin | A Nation Of Aviators | |
| 1982 | Bobby Thompson, played for the NY Giants and hit the “shot heard ’round the world” tobeat the Dodgers in a playoff game | Great Moments in Sports | |
| 1983 | Samuel H. Ackerman | Many Americans – One Nation | -Special Guest: Harrie I. Davis, Native American from Mahwah -54 people sworn in as US Citizens at Village Hall before the Parade |
| 1984 | Lulu Eisenhauer | Imagination on Parade | |
| 1985 | The 75th Annual | 75th Annual Parade Fireman’s Fourth Special Guest: Ethel Maratene, original parader from 1910 | |
| 1986 | Walter Lascar & Bob Livingston (former Parade Chairmen) | Symbols of Freedom | Special Guest: Kenneth Taylor, former Canadian Ambassador and “the hero of the Iranian hostage crisis” |
| 1987 | John Pizzarelli, Saddle River musician who performed “I Like Jersey Best” and Joseph Cosgriff who wrote the song | I Like Jersey Best | |
| 1988 | Irene & William Kuipers | American Ingenuity | |
| 1989 | Today’s Youth – Tomorrow’s Future | ||
| 1990 | Juanita Tobin, a well-known local poet formerly of Ridgewood | The Bill of Rights | The annual celebration continued with the Parade, the fireworks were cancelled due to security issues |
| 1991 | Charlotte Adams | Celebrate America | Fireworks Returned! Gulf War veterans march and ride floats with their families |
| 1992 | Columbus: the Great Explorer | The Parade went on while the fireworks were again cancelled sue to security issues | |
| 1993 | Joe Perillo, a 39 year veteran of the Ridgewood Police Department | ||
| 1994 | Celebrate Ridgewood | Ridgewood celebrates 100 years! | |
| 1995 | |||
| 1996 | Honor America | Special Guests: Chris Borgen – Broadcaster, newsman Beverly Bower – Former Met Diva, teacher, Rodland scholarship member Harlan Coben – Author Sgt. Major Peter De Vries – Most decorated Sgt. Major Denise Navaro – Speical Olympian Al & Caryn Cone Vanderbush – Al served in the military, retired as a Colonel and now teaches at West Point. Caryn is an Olympian swimmer and Silver Medalist. Lindsay White & Allison Wojcik – twirlers who have won many national awards | |
| 1997 | Retired Fire Chief Francis X. Nolan | Celebrate Service…. | 100th Anniversary of the Ridgewood Fire Department A Fireman’s Fourth Very Special Guest: Fire Chief Robert D. Missel Special Guests: Retired Members of the RFD |
| 1998 | All American Kids: Kids who contribute to making America what it is | The American Way | |
| 1999 | Chris Borgen | A Century Of American Memories | |
| 2000 | Makenzie Brooks | America Dream On | Mackenzie Brooks is the 2000 national representative of the March of Dimes.Special Guests:Garrett E. Reisman NASA AstronautEdward N. Ryan, Jr. Technical Training Instructor at JFK Space CenterIrine Fokine, Dance Instructor Extraordinaire |
| 2001 | |||
| 2002 | Our Flag was Still There | Honoring police, fire and service men and women for their work at Ground Zero after the September 11 attacks | |
| 2003 | Good Old Summertime | ||
| 2004 | |||
| 2005 | |||
| 2006 | Star Spangled Sports | ||
| 2007 | |||
| 2008 | |||
| 2009 | David F. Bolger | 50 States, One Nation | |
| 2010 | 100 Years of Supporting the Tradition | 100th Annual Parade | |
| 2011 | Celebrate the Constitution | Congressman Scott Garrett donated 500 copies of the Constitution so one could be given to every 5th greader in town | |
| 2012 | Born in New Jersey | ||
| 2013 | Thornton “Thorny” Lockwood/ William Bartlett | Honoring Our Declaration of Independence | Govenor of NJ Chris Christie was a last minute Special Guest for the parade |
| 2014 | Flag of 1814 | The Star Spangled Banner, 1814-2014 | |
| 2015 | Charlotte Samuels | American Innovation | 105th Annual Parade |
| 2016 | America the Beautiful – Celebrating 100 Years of our National Parks | No Grand Marshall Special Guests: The Women Gardeners of Ridgewood and The Hobbyists of Ridgewood | |
| 2017 | Bob Paoli | Honoring Those Who Serve | Perfect weather, excellent turn out for the fireworks |
| 2018 | Ciaran Sheehan | Rockin Ridgewood: Celebrating All-American Music | Thunderstorms threatened fireworks and gate opening was slightly delayed but all went well in the end |
| 2019 | David Madden: Ridgewood ‘s Jeopardy Champion | “All-American Summer” | Beautiful day, fireworks show ended two minutes early due to a minor malfunction |
| 2020 | Planned to be Olympic Medal Winner Carin Cone | Theme was to be: “The Olympics: Go Team USA” | Only flag raising hosted. No parade, evening entertainment or fireworks due to COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2021 | Feed the Frontlines | “Stronger Together” |
Flag raising and parade on Monday, July 5. No fireworks due to ongoing Covid-19 pandemic concerns
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| 2022 | RHS Marching Band: Celebrating 100 Years | “Let Freedom Ring” | Beautiful day, crowd beginning to return to pre-pandemic levels. Evening Entertainment & Fireworks(presented by Grucci) return. 50/50 raised $4,400 |
Ridgewood 4th of July Celebration 