Robin Cantrell smiled as the whistle of steam engines pierced the excited buzz of parade goers, her 3-year-old granddaughter proudly waving an American flag along the side of Tribble Gap Road.
Three generations stood under the Cantrell’s tent, the youngest, Abel Youngblood, just a year old.
“I love it — I wouldn’t have it no other way,” Cantrell said. “My [favorite part] of the whole day is coming to the parade. I’ve probably been coming at least 50 years.”
Born and raised in Forsyth County, the family has attended the Thomas-Mashburn Memorial Steam Engine Parade almost since its founding.
Tuesday marked the event’s 60th anniversary, a tradition harkening back to July 4, 1957, when A.G. “Glen” Thomas rode his steam engine around the old courthouse in Cumming to honor American veterans.
Since then, the parade — which features 20-30 steam engines, local Veterans groups, City of Cumming Mayor H. Ford Gravitt and numerous floats — has been an Independence Day staple for many, like the Cantrells.
“They brought us our whole lives,” said Jade Youngblood, Cantrell’s daughter. “I bring my kids now; it’s just an every year thing. I love that the [city] still does this and it can get everybody together.
“No matter how much [Forsyth] keeps growing, we can all come together and have fun on the Fourth of July.”
That fun was reflected in the faces and smiles of residents young and old, in children who quickly ducked under the yellow parade rope to grab stray candy tossed out by those on floats and in elderly couples sitting in camping chairs, donning their red, white and blue.
Despite being a joyous occasion, the parade took a more somber note as the family of 1st Lt. Weston C. Lee — a soldier killed in action on April 29 — made their way through downtown.
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends,” memorial banners read.
As 13-year-old Sophia Walker sat on a blanket on the sidewalk, she reflected on the day.
“I like the soldiers walking [in the parade,]” she said. “Just what they do and how they do it —it’s [honorable.]”