PAGE TWO - the floats

Lee and Karen Duquette took a tour trough the 40,000 square foot American Celebration on Parade building with descriptive plaques at each float. The building is ADA accessible.

American Celebration on Parade is one of America’s most unique museums and offers an up-close experience with parade floats from famous national celebrations including Presidential Inaugural Parades, the Philadelphia Thanksgiving Day Parade and much more. On television these floats may seem small, but here, they are larger than life. It i’s a once-in-a-lifetime, family-friendly, up-close experience that’s impossible to describe. There were a lot of full-sized parade floats up close and signs about how they were created.

There are many other things besides floats, including including the 60-foot long by 40-foot long USA flag used in multiple Presidential Inaugurals beginning with President Reagan’s in 1989. The flag was later used in President Bush’s and President Obama’s inaugurations.

Each October, American Celebration on Parade is transformed into one of Virginia’s most interesting and terrifying Haunted Houses! but it is doubtful that the two RV Gypsies would ever be here in October.

History BookHow American Celebration on Parade was Created:
Earl C. Hargrove, Jr. owned Hargrove, Inc., a company in Lanham, MD that designed parade floats and Presidential Inaugural backdrops beginning with President Truman’s float in 1949. Over the years, these floats and backdrops were brought here to create one of the world’s most interesting museums, opened in 2000. The color, artistry and detail behind each is astounding, and many are made entirely from everyday and natural materials like straw, flowers, seeds, papier mâché, steel and wood. Visit them up close at your own pace.
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The Singing in the Rain Ducks
Fun facts about the duck float
 Singing in the Rain float information
Singing In the Rain Duck float Singing In the Rain Duck float
Singing In the Rain Duck float and view of the swans
Swan scene sign
swan float swan float

Below: A few things on the upper side wall
things on the upper side wall things on the upper side wall

Below: Special Delivery
Special Delivery fuzzy bear float information
Specaii Delivery fuzzy bear float and Lee Duquette

Below: Lee Duquette listened to the guide while Karen Duquette took photographs. Notice lots of smaller stuff on the shelves all throughout the building. They were lucky enough to be the only two people on this tour at this time.
Lee Duquette listening to the guide Special Delivery float
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King Neptune

Below: Behind The Special Delivery float, came King Neptune.
King Neptune float
King Neptune float
King Neptune information
dragon on King Neptune float

Below: Seahorses, fish and more on the King Neptune float.
King Neptune and seahorses big pink seahorse
fun facts about seahorses a green seahorse

Karen Duquette loves seahorses. She even has one on her Christmas tree, which is really a "travel tree" and has nothing to do with this exhibit. But that is why she took the selfie shown below.
Karen Duquette and a seahorse Octopus

Below: And here HE is - King Neptune himself

King Neptune
stuff in the sea King Neptune and his big spear
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Pelican Float
sign about the pelican float

Below: A panorama showing the above Pelican float and part of the float across from it - The Genie (shown below the panorama).
panorama of Pelican float and Genie float

Below: Genie facts

Below: The Genie float and the Elephant float
Genie facts Genie float and the Elephant float

Below: The Elephant float (also shown above by the Genie).
Elephant float sign
 Elephant float
Elephant float fun facts about floats

Below: The two RV Gypsies got to look inside the Elephant float as per the sign above. It does not look like it would be fun to drive these floats. Vision would be very poor.
look inside the Elephant float look inside the Elephant float

Below: Different views of the Elephant float - and Lee Duquette still learning details from the guide.
Lee Duquette and the guide Elephant float
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Below: As shown by these photos, the polar bears were alongside King Neptune (which was shown earlier)
Karen Duquette by the Polar bear float
sign about the Polar Bears float
Polar Bears float
fun facts about the Polar Bears float Polar Bears float
Polar Bears float Polar Bears nose

Below: And behind the polar bears were some cute penguins.

polar bear float, penguins and King Neptune

look below

go to the next adventure of the two RV Gypsies Continue on to page 3 of American Celebration on Parade, more floats, and the amazing section that Karen Duquette calls - American Pride.