PITTSFIELD, Mass. — For nearly eight decades, downtown Pittsfield has turned its streets into a chilling spectacle for one night each year during its Halloween Parade.

 

This year's parade was no different with 35 community organizations showcasing the ghosts of parade past, with participants designing or dressing up as past Halloween parades. 

 

The parade has a long history dating back to the mid-1940s, when General Electric and other local businesses created spooky floats and marched down North Street. The parade moved to Tyler Street in 2011.

 

When planning her first Halloween Parade, the city's new Parks and Recreation Department Recreation and Special Events Coordinator Jennifer VanBramer was inspired by the digitized Pittsfield Parks Department Scrapbooks when developing the theme. 

 

"I was looking through all the old photos of parade floats and reading all the articles about how different local businesses got involved and participated in the parade. And seeing the growth of the parade over the years was a really cool thing to see in those scrapbooks," she said. 

 

"So, the theme came about, I wanted to honor those past. A lot of them are very iconic parades that have taken place since the '40s, and paid tribute to the parade's rich history and legacy in the city." 

 

High school students scored the 10 floats on their theme, effort, originality, and costumes and determined the winners as Taconic High School's "War of 1812 — Prisoner of War Cantonment" for first place, Cantarella School of Dance's "Thriller Night" for second and Berkshire Carousel's "Scare-ousel" for third. 

 

The event had an amazing turnout and despite the rain was filled with joy and excitement, VanBramer said. 

 

The high energy continued even after the parade, with video circulating online of the experience and a dance battle breaking out between Drury's marching band and the Berkshire BeWitches, she said. 

 

All local elementary schools took part, and there were smiles and fun on everyone's faces. Participants and spectators enjoyed themselves, VanBramer said. 

 

"I also really enjoyed Capeless Elementary School's float. Their float was called 'Haunted Hometown Maps for Sale,'" she said. 

 

"So, on their float, they had printed maps of downtown Pittsfield, and on their float, they had different street signs. I remember when they passed by seeing North Street and Tyler Street, and it was just kind of a different take on the theme, more of the haunted hometown side of it, which was really fun to see."

 

The parade has always been community focused with schools, businesses, groups, and organizations coming together, VanBramer said.  

 

"I think this parade just highlights the different and wonderful groups and organizations we have in Pittsfield," she said. 

 

"So, I think that's one of the cool things about the parade. It's highlighting our schools and what they're doing, as well as the organizations that we have, and all the fun things that are going on in Pittsfield." 

 

It was an amazing first experience and hopefully next year more organizations get involved and the parade keeps growing, VanBramer said.