Parade

2023 Morton Pumpkin Festival Parade

MORTON PUMPKIN FESTIVAL PARADE 2023
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 16
10:30 AM

Applications for the 2023 Morton Pumpkin Festival Parade are now available. For any questions, please reach out to paggen@mortonillinois.org.

One of the premier events at the Morton Pumpkin Festival is the Morton Pumpkin Festival Parade. Held Saturday morning at 10:30 am along Jefferson Street, the parade boasts over 100 entries including floats, marching bands, antique vehicles, and popular children’s characters.

The parade route will again feature our Parade Donut Stands. Stop by these bright blue Pepsi concession trailers, located in key spots along Jefferson Street, for pumpkin donuts, coffee, milk, and cold beverages.  Hosted by MYBA (Morton Youth Baseball Association) these stands are the perfect way to enjoy a taste of the Morton Pumpkin Festival while also supporting a local non-profit organization.  MYBA will also be selling pumpkin donuts from golf carts along the parade route!

Don’t forget to bring a bag to collect candy and toys, handed out by many of our Festival entries, and please wear ORANGE to the parade to show your pumpkin spirit!

We can’t wait to see you at the Morton Pumpkin Festival Parade! If you can’t join us in person, watch the parade streaming live from your home or office at www.mortonpumpkinfestival.org

The parade line-up will be released early September.

Parade Rules & Regulations

Parade entries must be decorated to the 2023 Festival theme — “Farmin’ Pumpkins

No weapons or items resembling a weapon. If you are in doubt about whether something is a weapon or resembles a weapon, please do not bring it to the parade. If you bring such items, you will be kindly asked to put the items away during the parade.

Float entries must be on a hayrack or flatbed trailer. Maximum height of floats is 13 feet, 9 inches in order to clear electrical lines.

All walkers must be 8 years old or older. Younger children can safely ride on floats or be pushed/pulled in strollers or wagons accompanied by an adult. For safety, please make sure walkers stay a safe distance from vehicles and floats at all times.

Entries must keep their unit moving along the parade route and must keep a distance of no more than 30 feet between their unit and the entry in front of them.

No literature may be distributed.

No confetti or streamers may be thrown. Candy or toys may be distributed as follows:

  • No candy or toys can be thrown from a float, car, truck, or
  • Candy or toys may be thrown into the crowd by people walking alongside an
  • Walkers must be a minimum of 5’ away from an entry when throwing candy or toys.
  • Entries should not stop along the route for candy/toy throwers to refill their

Antique and custom vehicles may enter individually or as part of a group with a limit of 5 vehicles for any one group. Antique tractors pulling a float will be counted as part of the float entry.

Marching/Walking units are limited to:

  • Morton Boy Scout or Girl Scout Club
  • Marching Band
  • Flag or Rifle Corp
  • Military/Veteran’s organization
  • Politicians, as noted by rules regarding political entries
  • Mascots and kid-friendly characters

Semi units are not permitted in the parade.

Animal units are required to have their own cleanup system and/or crew.

Commercial Vehicles may enter the parade if they are:

  • Pulling a float decorated to festival
  • Being used by a non-profit Morton organization and are decorated to festival
  • Being used by approved

Area politicians may enter as a separate unit or may ride on the float/entry for their party. This includes State Senators, State Representatives, Judges, Regional/County offices, and local offices.

No inflammatory, negative, or profane language, messaging, or music

No scary costumes or haunted house related entries

No flips, back-hand-springs, or acrobatics of any kind

No provocative clothing, displays, signage, or music

Do not leave any personal items in Lincoln School’s bathrooms at the beginning of the Parade route. The schools will be locked up as soon as the parade finishes stepping off.

Parade officials reserve the right to restrict, limit, or reject (at any time including during the parade) any entry that in the sole determination of parade officials is inflammatory, controversial, and/or upsetting, or does not abide by the rules and regulations.

Parade officials will welcome and visit with parade entries and their Parade Unit On-Site Contacts during the staging of the parade in order to promote compliance with these rules and regulations. We please ask for your cooperation in making the parade enjoyable for all concerned

Parade Route

Sponsored by:

Donut Stands hosted by:

2022 Morton Pumpkin Festival Parade

2022 Parade Float Decorating Winners:

Grand Prize Winner: Girl Scout Troop 4967

Commercial 1st Place: Morton Buildings
Commercial 2nd Place: Better Banks
Commercial 3rd Place: Springfield Clinic

Non-Commercial 1st Place: Bethel Lutheran
Non-Commercial 2nd Place: Eastside Bible Church
Non-Commercial 3rd Place: Blessed Sacrament

MORTON PUMPKIN FESTIVAL PARADE 2022
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 17
10:30 AM

Applications for the 2022 Morton Pumpkin Festival Parade are closed. For any questions, please reach out to proche@mortonillinois.org.

2022 Parade Line-Up

NumberName of Organization or Business
1Chief of Police
2American Legion
3Fire Department
4Tazewell County Sheriff’s Office
5Troop 178 & 1178, Scouts BSA
62022 Parade Marshal
7MHS Marching Band
8Morton High School Dance Team
9Morton High School Cheer
10Libby
11Mayor Kaufman
12Pumpkin Princess Carriage
13Precious Baby Contest
14Pumpkin Weigh Off – Nestle
15Pumpkin Idol Jr. Winner
16Hackman Dancers
17Morton High School Class of 1987
18Morton Jr. High School Band
19Morton Junior High Dance Team
20Morton Jr High Cheer
21Morton Redwings
22Tazewell County Fair
23Morton Community Bank
24WOOF Therapy Dogs
25Elevate Church
26Super Suds Laundry
27Reflections Memory Care
28Solid Rock Christian Academy
29Re/Max Traders Unlimited
30Morton United Futbol Club
31Smalltown Dental
32Celtic Cross Pipes & Drums
33CIRT, Central Illinois Riding Therapy
34Cub Scout Pack 85
35Bethel Lutheran School
36The Center for Youth and Family Solutions
37Girl Scout troop 4969
38Kevin Johnson for Tazewell Co. States Attorney
39Darren Bailey for Governor
40Tazewell County GOP
41Chick-fil-a
42Heroes Inc
43Keller Williams Premier Realty
45Morton High School Volleyball
46Fliginger’s Outdoor Power Center
47Washington Central Intermediate School Marching Band
48Ackerman Family Farms
49Parkin Farms – Farmall Family Farms
50Tender Care Animal Hospital
51Oasis Church
52Coldwell Banker Real Estate Group
53Cadence Academy Preschool
54Morton High School Gameball Run
55Tazewell County Democrats of IL
56Trail Life Troop IL – 0316
57American Heritage Girls
58Star Wars Costuming Groups
59Condcordia Lutheran
60SouthStream Classic Cars
61Sandridge Food Corporation
62104.9 The Wolf
63Tazewell Floor Covering
64Blessed Sacrament School
65Morton Antique Tractor Club
66Big Cats and St. Pats Junior High Marching Band
67Unity Point Clinic Morton -Express, Family & Pediatrics
68WBNH 88.5 FM Good News Radio
69Girl Scouts Service Unit 36
70Mike Murphy Ford
71Morton Buildings
72Desi Anderson for State Senate
73Blue Jays Learning Center
74Potter’s Alley
75Yordy Turkey Farm
76Keller Williams Revolution
77Midwest Food Bank
78Captivation Dance, LLC
79OSF Morton Pediatrics
80Better Banks
81Peoria Brick Company
82Morton Industries
83Two Men and a Truck
84Leaves n Beans
85Precision Planting
86Roanoke-Benson High School Marching Band
87Caterpillar Morton Distribution Center
88Peoria Prowlers Roller Derby
89Nutrien Ag Solutions
90MIX 106.9
91Springfield Clinic
92ReCenter – EXP Realty
93Gabe Casey
94Elevate Trampoline Park
95WCIC
96BTD Manufacturing
97Winkel Lawn Care, Inc
98KZ 102.3
99Kennel Lake Sportsmen’s Club
100CASE IH (CNH Industrial)
101Eastside Bible Church
102Veterans Group

Date: Saturday, September 17
Time: 10:30 AM 
Parade Marshal Host: Gary Watson

What is a Reverse Parade?

To showcase our community’s creativity and celebrate our local businesses and organizations, Roaring Pumpkins and All That Jazz will host a Reverse Parade this year. This year, instead of having our floats travel down the parade route, parade attendees will drive along a lineup of stationery parade floats at the Morton VFW Post 5921, 2310 Veterans Rd.

This will be a float-only parade. All floats will be asked to be decorated and/or constructed to the Roaring Pumpkins and All That Jazz theme. Groups that normally participate in the parade but do not have a float (marching bands, walking groups, etc.) will have the option of submitting a 30-second video that will be compiled with other entries and shared on the Festival Facebook and YouTube pages. Marching bands can submit a song up to 2-minutes.

Float entries will be asked to park their float in place by 8:30 AM on Saturday, September 19 before the parade attendees arrive. Each entry may only request a single space that is 25 ft. The float will remain in this spot until 2:30 PM, after the last car finishes the route (last car will be admitted at 2:00 PM).

For the safety of our float entries, volunteers, and attendees, float entries are encouraged to drop off their floats and return to pick them up after 2:30pm.

 

Floats will not be permitted to pass out anything during the Reverse Parade, but may submit heat resistant candy or other handout items to be added to a family goodie bag that will be handed out to the first 50 cars that arrive each hour (10:30am, 11:30am, 12:30pm, 1:30pm)

 

*Due to being limited to a certain amount of space, there will only be 30 floats in this year’s parade.*

 

Entries that wish to be judged will compete for the $250 Grand Prize and $100 for Best Commercial and $100 Non-Commercial Entry.

Thank you to our sponsor: