Unions, candy, politicians, bands: It was Galesburg's Labor Day parade all over again

GALESBURG — The sky was gray but the mood was anything but as the 130th annual Galesburg Trades and Labor Assembly Labor Day Parade kicked off downtown on Monday morning.

Dozens of entries spread out from a nucleus at the intersection of Main and Chambers streets, with tendrils of people and vehicles reaching out east, south, and north, awaiting the 10 a.m. start of the parade sending entries down Main Street.

In many ways, it was like any other parade. There were children and marching bands. Politicians and big trucks. Vintage cars and flags. Pounds of candy was thrown. Stearman biplanes buzzed through the air. Fair queens rode in a classic Mustang. Parade marshal Darrel Moody waved from an antique Ford, built in Detroit by union hands. Crowds applauded.

For some, minds were simply on having fun. Mason, 7-years-old, excitedly rushed out to gather candy.

“We never miss it,” said his mother, Rachel Medina, “I just love to see the kids enjoy themselves.”

“We just moved within walking distance of here and seeing the crowd is really something.”

While the crowd was not as large as in 2021, when the Budweiser Clydesdales came to town and the city residents seemed to use the event as a great shaking off and stretching of their arms following the first year and a half of pandemic. But still, the crowd numbered in the thousands.

More:130th Galesburg Labor Day parade

A swelling of mood was felt as the crowd thickened along the downtown path from Chamber to Cherry. The crowd sights were usual, and possibly a comfort. Babies in strollers and dogs on leashes. Hats identifying the wearer as a veteran and plastic bags of candy. Teens trying not to look like they were enjoying themselves and lawn chairs carried from varying levels of quality parking spots.

For some in the mass, it was a reminder of the past, and what generations of workers banded together to fight for.

Jane Dickerson stood with her husband, Bill, who was armed with his camera.

Her father, Fred Emery, was a printer and was manager and editor of the Galesburg Labor News for more than 20 years. After coming home from World War II, his career began.

“Unions were his life,” remembered Dickerson, “but he didn’t bring work home with him.”

“He cared about people getting a human wage and people getting their due for the work they did.”

Emery’s paper, The Labor News, reported on the 80th annual parade, which also kicked off at 10 a.m. on Sept. 5, 50 years ago in 1972.

The parade, with the theme “prosperity through unionism,” was considered a success. It too had over 80 different entrants with several thousand lining the streets. Local Lodge 1659, Machinists (Gale Products), C.W.A. 5073 (telephone company) won first and second place for their floats. Shelley Miller, 18, was “Miss Labor Day.”

For others, it was a reminder of the challenges for workers today.

Among the many unions in the parade was a contingent of Galesburg Education Association, the union of local teachers. President Alicia Condreay was with them.

“This is a very important year, it’s a contract year, and there’s been so many changes in the last couple years,” she said.

Taking part in the parade is also part of making the community aware of the needs of teachers in Galesburg.

In addition to challenges in the last several school years due to the Covid pandemic, Galesburg is most notably dealing with the still-changing school buildings. Schools have closed, combined and remodeled.

“We are still defining just what a middle school is,” explained Condreay, “all sixth graders, over 500, will now be under one roof.”

Manpower is an issue throughout Western Illinois schools.

Due to the number of changes, she invites parents and community members to reach out and learn what challenges teachers face on a day to day basis.

Despite these changes, Condreay does not anticipate trouble in the future, crediting a good relationship between the GEA and the school board.

The parade marched on for just short of an hour, ending with a roar of motorcycles and the scattering of crowds walking away with lawn chairs and candy.

This article originally appeared on Galesburg Register-Mail: Unions, candy, politicians, bands: It was Galesburg's Labor Day parade