There’s been many a tale of good times in Eastham during the town’s 365-year history, but many might find it hard to top the shindig thrown here during the summer of 1951.
Eastham celebrated its 300th anniversary that year, with festivities hitting historic levels during the week of Aug. 19-25. The town’s tercentenary celebration was highlighted by thousands of people attending a huge parade, a clam bake, a historic pageant, and a square dance on the town’s famous Windmill Green.
On hand for the hoopla was none other than Mayor Walter E. Hereford, and his wife, of East Ham, England, who crossed the Atlantic and found themselves in the middle of the fun, including a prominent place in the parade on Aug. 22.
Thousands Witness Parade at Eastham” was the front page headline of the Aug. 23, 1951, edition of the Cape Cod Standard-Times.
“Thousands of persons lined both sides of G.A.R. Highway for two miles yesterday afternoon and saw one of the largest parades ever held on Cape Cod as it wended its way through the center of Eastham,” the paper reported. “There were nearly 100 floats, miscellaneous entries and marching units.”