Evening debut, patriotic flyover and the long-awaited return of the Historic Folsom Cattle Drive combined for one of the largest hometown celebrations in parade history. You can watch video coverage HERE.
Three historic World War II-era aircraft soaring over Historic Folsom signaled the beginning of an unforgettable evening Wednesday as one of the largest crowds in the history of the Historic Folsom Hometown Parade packed Sutter Street from Coloma Street to Reading Street for the community’s first-ever evening parade and the long-awaited return of the Historic Folsom Cattle Drive.
Just before 7 p.m., a trio of beautifully restored North American T-6 Texan aircraft made a patriotic flyover above the Historic District, officially opening an evening that celebrated three milestone anniversaries in one remarkable year: the 250th anniversary of the United States, the City of Folsom’s 80th anniversary and the 65th anniversary of the Folsom Pro Rodeo. Flying in formation above one of the city’s most historic corridors, the legendary World War II training aircraft provided a fitting tribute to begin a night rooted in history, patriotism and community pride.
The T-6 Texan, often referred to as “The Pilot Maker,” trained thousands of Allied pilots during World War II and the years that followed. Its appearance over Historic Folsom added a layer of aviation history to an evening already rich with symbolism, tying America’s milestone birthday to a hometown celebration that honored Folsom’s past while looking toward its future.
As the aircraft disappeared from view, nationally acclaimed violinist Carlos Reyes stepped forward to perform the National Anthem. His rendition carried through the Historic District as spectators stood along both sides of Sutter Street, flags raised and hats removed before the first entries began making their way through the heart of Historic Folsom.
By the time the parade stepped off, spectators lined nearly the entire route. Families had arrived early with lawn chairs and blankets, while sidewalks, storefronts, patios and corners filled with residents and visitors eager to see how the city’s beloved parade would feel in its new evening setting. What had traditionally been a morning event took on an entirely different personality as the summer light softened, restaurants filled and the Historic District became one long gathering place from the upper blocks of Sutter Street toward Reading Street.
Organizers moved the parade to the evening this year for several reasons, including cooler temperatures, the ability to stage the cattle drive safely and effectively after the parade, and the opportunity to better coincide with the opening of the Folsom Pro Rodeo on Thursday. If the goal was to create a new kind of hometown celebration that could serve as a true kickoff to rodeo week, Wednesday night’s turnout suggested they accomplished exactly that.
The crowd stretched deep in places, with children sitting along curbs, parents standing behind them and late arrivals finding whatever open view they could. Historic Folsom’s restaurants, wine bars, breweries and shops also enjoyed one of their busiest evenings of the summer, with patios full before the parade began and visitors lingering long after the final cattle exited the route.
“I’ve been coming to this parade for years,” Tom Pendelton told Folsom Times, “but I’ve never seen Sutter Street this full of people. The evening parade created such a wonderful atmosphere, and seeing the cattle drive return brought back a lot of great memories.”
The sense of occasion was clear from the start. Folsom Police Department motorcycle officers led the procession onto Sutter Street, followed by the Color Guard, a bagpiper carrying the flag and the official parade banner carried by Jr. Vista Eagles. Announcers positioned throughout the route, including former Sacramento County Sheriff John McGinness, John Felts, Ian Cornell, Bryan Greenwalt and Alicia Wilson, helped guide spectators through the evening by introducing entries and sharing details about the people and organizations taking part in the celebration.
One of the evening’s most meaningful ovations came early as Grand Marshal Bill Anderson made his way through Historic Folsom aboard a stagecoach. Anderson, 86, has spent decades preserving and sharing Folsom’s railroad history and is widely known as one of the community’s most dedicated historians, volunteers and storytellers. He smiled and waved as spectators called out congratulations, recognizing a man who has spent much of his life making sure Folsom’s stories continue to be passed from one generation to the next.
His presence at the front of the parade carried special meaning in a year built around history. During a celebration that honored America’s 250th anniversary, Folsom’s 80th anniversary and the 65th Folsom Pro Rodeo, Anderson represented the very spirit of preservation and community connection that the evening was meant to celebrate. For many residents, seeing him lead the parade felt less like a ceremonial role and more like a community thank you.
Patriotism remained a central theme throughout the opening portion of the route. Active-duty Army personnel were followed by representatives of the Sons, Daughters and Children of the American Revolution, adding another tribute to the nation’s milestone anniversary. Local and state leaders followed in classic vehicles and horse-drawn wagons, including Rosario Rodriguez, Assemblyman Josh Hoover, Sen. Roger Niello, City Manager Bryan Whitemyer and members of the Folsom City Council.
The Folsom High School Marching Band soon brought the unmistakable sound of a hometown parade to the Historic District, filling Sutter Street with music as spectators clapped along from the sidewalks. Behind them came a strong public safety presence that drew enthusiastic applause, including the Folsom Mounted Unit, BearCat SWAT vehicle, a vintage 1959 police car, Mercy Hospital of Folsom, Fire Truck 35 and CERT volunteers, Battalion 15 and a beautifully restored 1937 American LaFrance fire engine.
Those entries gave the early portion of the parade a familiar rhythm of civic pride and nostalgia. Children waved as firefighters passed. Families snapped photographs of classic emergency vehicles. Mounted officers greeted spectators from horseback. The mix of modern public safety equipment, historic vehicles and local volunteers created a reminder that Folsom’s community traditions are built not only on celebration, but on the people and organizations that serve the city throughout the year.
The parade also paid tribute to the railroad history that Anderson has worked so hard to preserve. Members of the Folsom, El Dorado and Sacramento Historical Railroad Association represented the city’s rail heritage, a fitting nod to both Folsom’s earliest transportation history and the Grand Marshal himself. From there, the parade shifted into a colorful blend of music, history and local personality with DJ Elo, Teichert’s 1928 Ford Model T, Quick Quack Car Wash, the Folsom Powerhouse Model A, the 501st Star Wars Group and the Patriot Power rail car.
That variety became one of the evening’s defining features. The parade was not simply a procession of floats and vehicles. It became a moving portrait of Folsom, with each entry adding a different piece of the community’s identity. Classic cars gleamed beneath the evening light. Local businesses rolled by with decorated vehicles and smiling participants. Children cheered for costumed characters, princesses and the Star Wars group. Parents pointed out familiar names from schools, nonprofits, local restaurants and community organizations.
As the route continued, Community Bible Church, Sal Livorsi’s 1956 Chevrolet convertible, Catherine’s Creperie, the Sutter Surfer, Mopar Car Club entries, Friends of Folsom Parkways, Big Mamas Limo, Twin Lakes Food Bank, Sutter Street Theatre, Storytime Princesses and Snooks Candies helped fill the middle portion of the parade with local flavor. The entries reflected the mix of service groups, businesses, entertainment, charities and longtime Folsom names that have helped make the parade a community favorite for years.
The crowd remained engaged throughout the route. Spectators leaned forward from restaurant patios, children waved from curbs and families several rows deep craned for a better view as each new entry appeared. The evening schedule allowed the event to feel less hurried than a morning parade, giving residents time to dine, gather, visit and settle into the Historic District before the celebration began.
“The airplanes were really cool to watch,” Mason Gray, 10, of Folsom, said. “Then the longhorns came down the street, and that was my favorite part.”
The middle portion of the lineup continued with Folsom Ice Rink, Beach Hut Deli, the Murer House Foundation’s scooter entries, Natoma Lodge No. 64, Cynthia’s Queens, the Ophir Marching Band, Jake’s Journey Home, Mello Marine, Powerhouse Ministries, Leighton Dance Group, Douglas Feed, National Charity League and additional classic vehicle entries. The Ophir Marching Band brought another burst of music, while dance groups, charitable organizations and youth-focused entries continued to bring energy to the blocks lined with spectators.
Each entry carried its own personality. Some brought laughter. Others brought applause for their service. Some reminded spectators of the nonprofits quietly doing important work in the community, while others celebrated Folsom’s small businesses, local performers and historic institutions. Together, they created a parade that felt both deeply local and unusually expansive, with more than 80 entries representing a broad cross-section of the community.
Unlike many parades that gradually wind down near the end, Wednesday night’s event seemed to build toward something bigger. As dusk settled over Historic Folsom, the tone began shifting. The music, classic cars and civic entries gradually gave way to horses, western attire, rodeo personalities and the growing anticipation of the cattle drive’s return.
The Old West Legends helped set that mood, followed by MORE Real Estate’s horse and coach, Twin Lakes Riding Club and Shadow Glen Riding Stables. The sight of more horses entering the route changed the feel of the evening, signaling that the parade was moving from hometown celebration into a tribute to western tradition. Geoffrey Miller added live music before a series of Choose Folsom entries began highlighting the community’s connection to the Folsom Pro Rodeo.
The closing entries felt like a prelude to rodeo week. Choose Folsom’s Grand Marshal and multiple Rodeo Legends entries brought familiar western faces into the Historic District. Young Mutton Busters drew cheers from spectators, many of whom knew the children would soon become part of one of the rodeo’s most beloved traditions. The parade’s final stretch connected the street celebration directly to the arena, where the 65th annual Folsom Pro Rodeo was set to continue the festivities through the Independence Day holiday.
Then came the Painted Ladies, one of the most elegant and recognizable traditions connected to rodeo week in Folsom. With beautifully decorated horses, polished western attire and the kind of grace that always draws the eye, the Painted Ladies brought a final flourish of color and pageantry to Sutter Street. Their appearance gave the crowd one last visual cue that the evening was approaching the moment many had come specifically to see.
The cattle drive was the payoff.
Before the full herd moved through, one Texas Longhorn briefly broke away from the pack and took a short excursion along the route, giving spectators an unexpected glimpse of real western horsemanship as riders moved in and calmly worked to wrangle it back under control. The moment drew a surge of attention from the crowd, with phones lifting into the air as spectators watched the riders respond quickly and professionally.
Then, led by the Historic Folsom Cattle Drive banner carried by members of the FHDA followed by the michcattle, including Texas Longhorns, calmly made their way through the Historic District under the guidance of experienced riders. It was not a cattle run, as organizers had emphasized leading up to the event, but a carefully managed cattle drive designed to be safe, family-friendly and rooted in the region’s western heritage.
For longtime residents, the moment brought back memories of a tradition that had been absent for several years. For younger spectators, it offered a first glimpse at something many had only heard about. The sight of cattle moving through Historic Folsom, framed by historic buildings, restaurant patios and a crowd that had waited hours for the moment, gave the evening its most memorable image.
“We decided to come over from Gold River because we heard the cattle drive was returning,” Kathy Dawson said. “It turned out to be much more than that. Between the flyover, the parade and the western traditions, it was a wonderful evening and well worth the trip.”
The return of the beloved tradition was made possible through a partnership between the Folsom Historic District Association and Choose Folsom, whose collaborative effort revived an event that had been absent from Historic Folsom for several years. Their vision was supported by numerous community sponsors whose financial contributions helped bring the cattle drive back to Sutter Street, allowing longtime residents to relive cherished memories while introducing a new generation to one of Folsom’s signature western traditions.
More than simply commemorating America’s 250th anniversary, Folsom’s 80th anniversary and the 65th anniversary of the Folsom Pro Rodeo, the cattle drive served as a symbolic bridge between the city’s past and present. Before modern neighborhoods, shopping centers and regional growth transformed Folsom into one of the Sacramento region’s most vibrant communities, the area was shaped by railroads, ranching, gold country travel, western traditions and the people who connected one generation to the next.
For one evening, those connections felt visible. There were grandparents introducing grandchildren to traditions they remembered from years ago. There were first-time visitors discovering Historic Folsom for the first time. There were longtime residents reconnecting with neighbors they had not seen in months. There were children watching wide-eyed as longhorns moved down the same street where they might normally stop for ice cream, pizza or a weekend stroll.
By the time the final cattle and riders disappeared toward Reading Street, the event had accomplished far more than staging another hometown parade. It had brought together first responders, veterans, students, musicians, businesses, nonprofits, civic leaders, dancers, equestrians, rodeo families, local historians, visitors and longtime residents in one shared celebration of place.
The move to an evening schedule gave the parade a new identity. Instead of a morning procession that families attended before moving on with the day, Wednesday night’s event became the centerpiece of the evening. People arrived early, stayed late and filled the Historic District in a way that made the celebration feel larger than the parade itself. It became a festival, a reunion and a kickoff to rodeo week all at once.
Long after the final cattle exited Sutter Street and the crowds slowly made their way home, conversations throughout Historic Folsom centered on what many were already calling one of the community’s finest hometown parades ever. The patriotic T-6 Texan flyover, Carlos Reyes’ stirring performance of the National Anthem, the large crowd, the expanded announcer experience, the tribute to Grand Marshal Bill Anderson and the long-awaited return of the Historic Folsom Cattle Drive combined to create an evening that honored Folsom’s past while celebrating its future.
As rodeo week officially began and the city prepared for three more days of western tradition and celebration, Wednesday night’s event proved something many suspected all along: some traditions never lose their magic. Sometimes, all they need is the opportunity to come home.
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