Henderson Heritage Parade gives residents tour through city’s history
Henderson is kicking it back to the good old days to celebrate the city’s birthday.
The 62nd annual Heritage Parade is set from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. April 18 at the Henderson Events Plaza, 200 S. Water St.
“The Heritage Parade has been going on since 1953 to celebrate the city’s heritage, but it has been called different things over the years,” said city spokeswoman Nicole Johnson. “The celebration is typically held around the same time in April because that’s when the city was incorporated.”
Henderson was created as a township during World War II to supply the nation with magnesium for ammunition casings, airplane engines, frames and more. The city was established April 16, 1953, with a population of about 7,400.
Now the second-largest city in Nevada, Henderson is home to more than 280,000 residents.
“We’re expecting about 31,000 people at the celebration,” Johnson said. “We had a lower turnout last year because the weather didn’t really cooperate.”
Mayor Andy Hafen and City Council members are scheduled to kick off the event with a breakfast at 9 a.m. on the Convention Center lawn, 200 S. Water St.
A parade is set to follow at 10 a.m. and run from Ocean Avenue to Victory Road. The top three floats are scheduled to receive cash prizes.
“In the past, we have incorporated an international flair into the event, but this year, we’re going back in time,” Johnson said. “The theme is The Good Old Days, so it’ll be a collaboration of what residents consider to be the good old days.”
Johnson said portions of the event will be western-themed, including line and square dancing, barbecue food and fiddler entertainers. A car show is also planned from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Clyde Caldwell, executive director of the McCaw School of Mines, 330 Tin St., is set to contribute to the theme by offering mining experiences to attendees.
“They’ll use a clear straw and drill into several layers of different-colored sand we’ve salted with gold and silver flakes,” Caldwell said. “When they pull it out, we’ll put a little clay on both ends, and they can search for the flakes in their sample.
“The core sample shows them that if they took it from a big piece of property, this is where they would want to dig.”
Built on McCaw Elementary School’s campus, the school of mines opened in 1996 and provides free tours to fourth-grade students in Clark County. The facility received its 90,000th student visitor in March.
“We also have a group of fourth- and fifth-graders from the elementary school that we call Mighty Miners,” Caldwell said. “They come over after school for six weeks and learn about the history and how to give the tours. Then they give the tours to their peers. It’s a neat program.”
The facility is open to the public from 8 to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday from October to May or by appointment during the summer.
“We became a state during the Civil War because of the silver we had in Northern Nevada,” Caldwell said. “Mining is what Nevada was in the good old days.”
Festival parking is available at the Henderson Convention Center; the Henderson City Hall parking garage, 240 S. Water St.; and the Henderson Justice Court parking garage, 243 S. Water St.
Spectator admission is free. For more information,visit tinyurl.com/hendoheritageparade.
To reach Henderson View reporter Caitlyn Belcher, email cbelcher@viewnews.com or 702-383-0403. Find her on twitter: @caitlynbelcher.
