A crowd estimated at 8,000 got an unexpected dose of excitement during the 1960 Christmas parade. A fire call necessitated the Kingstree Rural Fire Department's trucks and tanker to pull out of the parade in the middle of town. As the trucks began to weave in and out among the nine bands participating in the parade and numerous floats, many of the spectators thought that it was a planned part of the festivities. However, it was really a tractor fire near Greeleyville.
Forty beauty queens participated in the parade and the Miss Merry Christmas pageant. Another highlight of the parade was the local Girl Scout troop riding in two Model Ts and one Model A cars. The Kingstree Jaycees, sponsors of the parade and the beauty pageant, dressed as clowns and circulated through the crowds as part of the parade fun. The parade lasted for over an hour.
On December 8, 1961, a colorful, 100-unit parade, passed by a crowd of an estimated 9,000 spectators. Seven bands from Andrews, East Clarendon, Macedonia, Berk, St. Stephen, Florence, and Kingstree high schools participated in the parade. Fireworks lit up the sky at dusk, preceding the Miss Merry Christmas pageant, which was won by Mary Lavan Collins, Miss Marion.
A gala parade welcomed the season on December 7, 1962. Huge numbers of spectators turned out, with crowd estimates at "not far from 20,000." The 80-unit parade was described by a reporter for the News & Courier as "outstanding, even in this town accustomed to big and lavish Christmas parades." Miss South Carolina Evelyn Ellis rode on one of the 12 floats in the parade. Statewide Jaycee President Jim Smith of Aiken also participated. The parade, which in addition to the floats included eight bands and numerous other entries, covered 10 blocks throughout the downtown area. One entry of special interest to local spectators was the State Champion Kingstree Mites Football Team.
Mary Frances Nexsen, Miss Anderson, was chosen Miss Merry Christmas from 25 contestants. Winning contestants had to make do with plain trophies borrowed from the high school's trophy case until their trophies could be mailed to them. In an embarrassing mix-up, the trophy company had sent a trio of football trophies rather than the Miss Merry Christmas awards.
In 1963, the Christmas festivities became a two-day event with the parade and beauty contest on Friday and the Merry Christmas dance on Saturday night at the armory. The 80-unit, seven-band parade moved through a "canyon of cheering youngsters," according to the News & Courier. The parade included floats from Town of Kingstree, Drexel, Williamsburg State Bank, the Sumter Iris Festival, Santee Electric, Warsaw Manufacturing, Dubin/Silversmam's Department Stores, and the City of Lake City.
Ruth Henderson, Miss Columbia, was crowned Miss Merry Christmas from a field of more than 20 contestants.
Statewide newspaper coverage of local parades tapered off after 1963, and I found no mention of Kingstree parades for the rest of the 1960s. However there is a brief mention in Frank Gilbreth, Jr's "Ashley Cooper" column in the News & Courier in December 1968. He and Bessie Swann Britton enjoyed a longstanding correspondence. He always referred to her as Mrs. BSB of Kingstree in his columns. In this one Mrs. BSB reported, "overheard at the Christmas parade here... Gentle Old Lady: It was nice of the News & Courier to send such a handsome float to be in our parade. Peppery Old Lady: It was no more than they should do. That newspaper's been Kingstree's Bible more than a hundred years."
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