November 06, 2026
Courtesy of the Special Collections Research Center/Temple University Libraries
Children smile as Santa Claus waves from his float at the 1970 Thanksgiving Day Parade in Philadelphia.
Ellis Gimbel, one of the founders of the former Gimbels Department Store, decided to think outside the box when gearing up for the holidays in 1920, sensing growing competition in Philadelphia's retail space.
Instead of confining decorations to her Center City store, Gimbel had 50 employees dress in costumes and adorned 15 Ford Model T cars with crepe paper on Thanksgiving morning. They then paraded along Market Street until they reached Gimbels, where Santa Claus climbed to the store's eighth story and kicked off the holiday shopping season. Unbeknownst to Gimbel or her employees, the small, modest procession marked the country's first Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Over the coming years, the parade's crowds began to multiply and celebrities turned out. The parade added the oversized balloons and floats that are now synonymous with the Thanksgiving tradition.
Other cities, including New York and Detroit, took note of Philly's success, beginning their own parades in 1924. By 1925, Gimbels had advertised the event an annual feature of the store.
"Planned to delight children and all who have young hearts, the event was enthusiastically received, Thanksgiving Day," an advertisement in the Inquirer reads. "And we were as happy as the upwards of two hundred thousand who thronged the line of march - happy in giving pleasure unalloyed."
The original parade route began at 21st and Spring Garden streets, moved north to Fairmount Avenue and west to the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. From there it headed toward City Hall and south on Broad Street before looping back at Christian Street. It ended at the Gimbels store at Eighth and Market streets.
At Gimbels, the processioners cheered as Santa Claus made a 100-foot ascent to the store's toy department. Organizers focused the event toward children by creating a kids-only observation stand and advertising in newspapers for attendees to bring their Christmas lists to the parade so that Santa's "little uniformed messenger" could deliver them to Kris Kringle personally.
Crowds packed Market Street to watch the 1961 Thanksgiving Day Parade in Philadelphia. Here balloons depicting 'Pussycat' and 'Piggy Wig with a Ring' are led toward Gimbels department store, which sponsored the parade for years.
The parade grew in its extravagance over the years. In 1929, the Inquirer wrote that Santa's "glittering courtiers, harlequins, lions, brave cowboys, fierce Indians, alive and queer beasts and lovable characters of storybook land" had come to life.
Fictional characters, like Alice in Wonderland and Humpty Dumpty, were among the float attractions that year. Caged tigers, leopards and bears were pulled alongside a "particularly seductive string band," which was meant to keep the animals calm. But the event was not without its hiccups.
"One of the wheels of Santa's gloat caught in the car tracks at Juniper and Market streets, tossing the king of the entertainment to the street, in real life, Epharim Freeman, a fireman," the Inquirer reported. "He was treated for a bruised back at Hahnemann Hospital."
The parade faced an uncertain fate in 1986, when Gimbels shut down. To maintain the tradition, executives from 6ABC and Boscov's stepped in as sponsors, ensuring the parade's longevity. 6ABC and Dunkin' have collaborated on the parade since 2011.
"What began as Ellis Gimbel's imaginative Philadelphia celebration became part of a much larger American tradition," said Spencer Salusky, a storyteller for Once Upon A Nation. "... It's a tradition passed down from one generation to the next. A tradition that survived the closing of the store that created it. A tradition that Philadelphia refused to let disappear."
Philadelphia hosted the country's first Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1920. Above, a crowd enjoying the parade in 2022.
This year's Thanksgiving Day Parade kicks off at 8:30 a.m. and features performers, marching bands and guest stars from "Abbott Elementary," "Dancing with the Stars," and "Scrubs."
The first Thanksgiving Day Parade is one of four firsts being celebrated this month as part of the Philadelphia Historic District 250th Committee's yearlong "52 Weeks of Firsts" program.
Every Saturday, a different person, invention or significant contribution with Philadelphia roots is being honored with its own "Firstival" from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Each event includes family activities, giveaways, live music, entertainment and stories told by Once Upon A Nation actors.
This Saturday, the Weitzman National Museum of Jewish History, at 101 S. Independence Mall East, is hosting an event honoring Gimbel and the Thanksgiving Day Parade's history. It includes dance performances, balloon artists and guest speakers.
Here are the other firsts being celebrated this month:
• First university in America (1740): Benjamin Franklin established the Academy of Philadelphia, now the University of Pennsylvania, as an educational center that taught young people concepts of business, religion, public service and liberal arts. Penn is hosting an event at Houston Hall, 3417 Spruce St., on Nov. 14.
• First Children's Hospital in America (1855): Three Philadelphia doctors started the first pediatric practice on South Blight Street (now Watts Street) with just 12 beds after being inspired by similar practices established in Europe. A firstival is being held at the Morgan Center for Research & Innovation, 2716 South St., on Nov. 21.
• First pencil with an attached eraser (1858): Philadelphia inventor Hyman Lipman's first iteration of the erasable pencil also required the eraser to be sharpened just like the lead side. The National Liberty Museum, at 321 Chestnut St., is hosting a celebration on Nov. 28.
A full list of the firsts being celebrated this year can be found on Visit Philadelphia's website.
