Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, 1933 (Daily News, via Newspapers.com™)

The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is an annual event held in New York City on Thanksgiving morning, featuring giant balloons, floats, marching bands, and performances. 

The first Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade (originally called the Macy’s Christmas Parade) was held in 1924 and featured Macy’s employees, live animals from the Central Park Zoo, festive floats, and Santa Claus. In 1927, the animals were replaced by the now-iconic character balloons, with Felix the Cat debuting as the first. 

The parade grew in size and spectacle over the decades, pausing only between 1942 and 1944 during World War II. Televised nationally since 1948, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is a beloved holiday tradition watched by millions both in person and via broadcast.

Learn more about the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade through historical newspapers from our archives. Explore newspaper articles, headlines, images, and other primary sources below.

Articles and Clippings about the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

Article describing what to expect from the first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1924 26 Nov 1924, Wed The Central New Jersey Home News (New Brunswick, New Jersey) Newspapers.com Newspaper photo showing Santa Claus in the first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1924 28 Nov 1924, Fri Daily News (New York, New York) Newspapers.com Newspaper photo showing participants marching in the first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1924 28 Nov 1924, Fri Daily News (New York, New York) Newspapers.com Prize-winning amateur photo of the Mother Goose float in the 1925 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 23 Dec 1925, Wed Bayonne Evening News (Bayonne, New Jersey) Newspapers.com Local groups want to ban Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1926; See it as "disrespectful" 04 Nov 1926, Thu The Kentucky Post (Covington, Kentucky) Newspapers.com Description of 1927 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the year Tony Sarg introduced the big balloons 23 Nov 1927, Wed The Bayonne Times (Bayonne, New Jersey) Newspapers.com Ad for the 1929 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, originally called the Macy's Christmas Parade 28 Nov 1929, Thu Daily News (New York, New York) Newspapers.com Description and photo of balloons designed by Tony Sarg in the 1929 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 29 Nov 1929, Fri Daily News (New York, New York) Newspapers.com Mickey Mouse balloon appears in Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade for the first time in 1934 29 Nov 1934, Thu Daily News (New York, New York) Newspapers.com 1942 obituary for Tony Sarg, who designed numerous balloons for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 09 Mar 1942, Mon The Atlanta Journal (Atlanta, Georgia) Newspapers.com Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is canceled in 1942 because of World War II 14 Nov 1942, Sat The Morning Union (Springfield, Massachusetts) Newspapers.com Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade resumes in 1945 after hiatus during World War II 22 Nov 1945, Thu Daily News (New York, New York) Newspapers.com Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade serves as backdrop for 1947 film "Miracle on 34th Street" 16 Aug 1947, Sat Rutland Daily Herald (Rutland, Vermont) Newspapers.com 1958 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade uses cranes to suspend balloons due to helium shortage 28 Nov 1958, Fri The Greenville News (Greenville, South Carolina) Newspapers.com Photo of the Radio City Rockettes in the 1958 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 28 Nov 1958, Fri Daily News (New York, New York) Newspapers.com CBS competes with NBC to cover Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, 1959 21 Nov 1959, Sat Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Fort Worth, Texas) Newspapers.com TV broadcast of 1960 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade will be in color 16 Oct 1960, Sun Star-Gazette (Elmira, New York) Newspapers.com Newspaper ad for the 1963 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 27 Nov 1963, Wed Daily News (New York, New York) Newspapers.com 1965 retrospective on some of the balloons that were featured in the Macy's parade over the decades 21 Nov 1965, Sun Hartford Courant (Hartford, Connecticut) Newspapers.com Betty White and Lorne Greene host their 10th consecutive Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1972 24 Nov 1972, Fri Daily News (New York, New York) Newspapers.com 50th Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is celebrated in 1976 26 Nov 1976, Fri Anderson Independent (Anderson, South Carolina) Newspapers.com Ronald McDonald balloon added to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1987 25 Nov 1987, Wed The Daily Spectrum (Saint George, Utah) Newspapers.com Article excerpt describing the schedule of a high school marching band in the 1993 Macy's parade 26 Nov 1993, Fri The Record (Hackensack, New Jersey) Newspapers.com 1996 newspaper article summarizing the history of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 28 Nov 1996, Thu Lancaster Eagle-Gazette (Lancaster, Ohio) Newspapers.com Newspaper ad for the 75th annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2001 16 Nov 2001, Fri Daily News (New York, New York) Newspapers.com Held months after 9/11, the 2001 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade "marches to patriotic beat" 22 Nov 2001, Thu South Florida Sun Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) Newspapers.com