The annual Macy’s Parade was started in 1924 by the department store’s immigrant employees, grateful for the warm welcome and open opportunities in their new country. At first called a Christmas parade, it was soon changed to Thanksgiving to make it more inclusive. The original marchers were store workers and professional entertainers who traveled from 145th Street in Harlem to Macy’s flagship store on 34th Street, wearing vibrant costumes from their homelands. The parade included floats, bands, and live animals borrowed from the Central Park Zoo. Balloons replaced live animals in 1927; helium filling was first used in 1928, and Mickey Mouse was introduced in 1934. Crowds of over one million people lined the streets to watch. Read more about the parade’s immigrant origins in A Brain. A Heart. The Nerve. (see NOVELS).
