A celebration of small town life in one of Vermont's most patriotic villages

The title of the newly published book of color photographs  60 Years of Struttin’ our Stuff – The Wardsboro Parade and Street Fair  has become the unofficial slogan for the 60^th anniversary of  the fabulous annual town-wide celebration. The 80-page book is a photo diary of everything that has made a small town’s street fair and parade famous. This year’s event co-chair Nancy Perkins said, “It’s fairly certain that almost everyone in town will either see photos of themselves in this book or of people they know and are related to!”

Hubert Schreibl, a professional photographer from South Londonderry donated many of the pictures of the parade that he has taken year after year. In fact, the idea for a picture book came about when Schreibl’s wife, Wendy commented that there were so many pictures of Wardsboro around their house that someone should make an album of them. Cris Tarnay, a friend of the Schreibl’s and Wardsboro resident, picked up on the comment and began to promote the idea. In no time, the 4^th of July Committee, led by the group’s treasurer, Anna Ayers, found itself swept up in the excitement of publishing a book of photographs about Wardsboro’s unique Independence Day celebration, an event that has grown to become one of the town’s oldest and most beloved traditions. Janice Hull, a Wardsboro historian who makes a habit of studying old pictures of the people and events in town put together a committee and did the painstaking work to bring the project to fruition just in time for the 60^th anniversary of the parade and street fair.

Dan Hescock, Wardsboro historian and co-editor of a book titled Wardsboro, VT – Exposing the Past which was published several years ago and continues to be a best-seller, provided the Leon Oliver collection of vinage phjotos of the parade and street fair in I early years.

Published by the Howard Printing Co., of Brattleboro,  60 Years of Struttin’ our Stuff – The Wardsboro Parade and Street Fair will be on sale on Parade Day at the History House at the intersection of Main Street and Route 100, just next to the Wardsboro Post Office  and the committee’s booth across from the barbeque tent.  The Wardsboro 4^th of July Street Fair and Parade is on Saturday, July 4, 2009.  Before and after the Fourth, the book is available online through the Parade’s official website, www.4thofJulyWardsboro.com or by calling 802-896-6141 to order by phone.