PEORIA, Ill. – A Peoria tradition that is the longest running event of its kind in the United States will take place Friday morning.
The 136th Annual Santa Claus Parade by Peoria Area Community Events will start at around 9:15 A.M. at the Peoria Central Firehouse on Monroe and Bryan Streets.
The route will go from Monroe to Main St., turn left onto Main, left on Adams, and then end past the Peoria County Courthouse on Fayette St.
The parade will feature 22 floats from PACE, including costumed characters, marching bands, and the arrival of Santa Claus to start the Christmas season.
Intersections that will be closed off during the parade include:
- Monroe and Wayne
- Monroe and Green
- Monroe and Hancock
- Monroe and Bryan
- Monroe and Spalding
- Monroe and Fayette
- Monroe and Hamilton
- Monroe and Main
- Jefferson and Main
- Adams and Main
- Adams and Hamilton
This year’s Grand Marshall is former Illinois Central College basketball and softball coach Lorene Ramsey. Ramsey won a combined 1,724 games in both sports as a coach, which includes seven Junior College national championships. She coached softball from 1970 to 1998 and basketball from 1969 to 2003. The ICC gym was named in Ramsey’s honor.
