Theme is Celebrate Oklahoma! A Unique History. An Extraordinary Future, the parade is free and will be broadcast live on OKC's OETA Channel 13.
In Short
It's all been leading up to this. Along with November's Oklahoma Centennial Spectacular at the Ford Center, the Centennial Parade is a premiere event in Oklahoma's celebration of its 100th birthday.There will be floats, giant balloons, marching bands and celebrities in what organizers are predicting will be "an event unlike any other the state has seen."
Appearing
A collection of local celebrities will appear in the Oklahoma Centennial Parade. Among them:- James Garner, one of the top famous Oklahomans will serve as Grand Marshal.
- Governor Brad Henry and 1st Lady Kim Henry
- Miss Americas: Jennifer Berry Gooden, Shawntel Smith Wuerch, Susan Powell, Jane Gamble and Lauren Nelson
- Sports stars: Shannon Miller, Jason White, Johnny Bench, Steve Owens, Billy Sims, John Smith and Eddie Sutton
- Musicians: Byron Berline, Ty England, Katrina Elam and Bryan White
- Astronauts: Owen Garriott, John Herrington, William Pogue and Thomas Stafford
Parade Route
The parade will follow a 2-mile route beginning at Sheridan and Hudson. It will proceed east to Robinson, then south to Reno. After following Reno to E.K. Gaylord, it will move north into Broadway at NW 4th and end at NW 8th.In addition, here is a complete map of the parade route in PDF format that includes locations for parking, concessions, restrooms, bleachers and more.
Centennial Parade Wrap Up
If you braved the traffic and tremendous crowds to attend the Oklahoma Centennial Parade, it was worth it, a once in a lifetime experience for the metro. The final numbers looked like this:- The estimated attendance was 175,000
- 3400 people participated in the parade
- There were 11 large floats, 13 giant balloons and 12 bands performing
- The parade lasted right around 2 hours and took 4 years to prepare
