History Files: Lodi staged huge Downtown Lodi Fourth of July celebration in 1912

by & Ralph Lea Christi Kennedy, special for the Lodi News Sentinel

originally published July 6, 2007

Lodi's festive daylong celebration of the Fourth of July in 1912 brought thousands of visitors to the young city that pulled out two parades, orations, firemen's water fights, baseball, a street dance and fireworks to demonstrate its community spirit and patriotism.

"Never before in the history of Lodi was there such a jam," reported the Lodi Sentinel on July 6, 1912.

Between 12,000 and 15,000 visitors from Stockton, Sacramento, Tracy and points beyond descended on Lodi for the holiday. They came by train, horses and buggies, motorcycles and automobiles. Thousands of automobiles, including a delegation of 40 from Turlock, were driven into Lodi creating "a procession of machines all day long," the newspaper said.

"Attempting to walk down Sacramento Street during the day was like trying to get through a crowd at a fire sale," wrote the Lodi Sentinel reporter, one of three staff members assigned to cover the day's events. "It seemed that hundreds of people wedged their way up and down the streets glorifying in the fact that Lodi was of such importance as to draw so many thousands of people."

A committee of business and community members spent weeks planning and raising $2,000 to put on the event.

Newspaper stories in the weeks leading up the holiday clearly show a city getting spruced up for a party. Paving along downtown street sections was hurried along. The fire department rushed to install a new fire-warning bell in the Main Street water tower. Old awnings with their wood post supports were removed from Sacramento Street businesses and replaced with modern steel-frame canvas awnings.

Just days before the holiday, the city finished installing modern streetlights called electroliers to "turn night into day." Business and property owners purchased the light fixtures, and the city provided the installation and electricity. "There is not a city in the country that can boast of such a splendid lighting arrangement for its commercial section," the newspaper said.

At dawn on Thursday, July 4, 1912, Dick Moore struck a match to the gunpowder under two heavy anvils and launched them loudly into the sky in a "sunrise salute" to start the day.

At 10 a.m., John W. Dougherty, parade grand marshal, sat in his saddle atop his majestic white horse at the corner of Sacramento and Lockeford streets. He signaled for the parade to begin and started the hour-long procession south on Sacramento Street. Wood planks laid across fruit crates were well-used benches for spectators along the long parade route down Sacramento Street to Locust Street west to Hutchins Street and south to Pine Street where the route went east to the Tokay Arch, as the mission-style arch was called then.

The Tokay Band marched along the streets and led the "Goddess of Liberty" float that carried Marie Murray as queen and her court of ladies. This was followed by a decorated automobile carrying Lodi Mayor George Lawrence and Stockton Mayor R. R. Reibenstein, marching Spanish-American War veterans, boy scouts and other groups, more than 20 floats and a long line of decorated automobiles.

After the parade ended, a program began under the Arch. Lodi's own Marion DeVries, chief justice on the U. S. Custom Court of Appeals, served as president of the day and introduced the speaker of the day Assemblyman J. W. Stuckenbruck. Then 24 ladies from the White Apron Club entertained the crowd for 30 minutes by performing drill team evolutions "with grace and exactness." The ladies also sang patriotic songs.

After the program, the crowds no doubt filtered out among the many vendors, clubs and churches selling food. Many concessions were also set up along Sacramento Street for entertainment. A particularly popular booth was the egg-throwing booth where the target was a man's head stuck through a hole in canvas.

Shortly after 1 p.m. a grand water fight between Lodi's two volunteer fire companies provided a good laugh. Six men from the Wide Awake company lined up 50 feet away from the six men of the Alert company on Main Street north of Pine Street. Behind each company was a "dead line". The team that aimed their hose and forced the men to step back over the line was the winner. At the tap of the bell, the men raced to attach their hoses and direct the stream of water at the other company. The fierce streams of water repeatedly knocked the men down, a sight many in the crowd enjoyed.

The Wide Awake company won the fight "primarily because they didn't eat lunch before the contest," the Lodi Sentinel said. "On the Alert team, Paul Koch got a stream in the stomach which nauseated him." Other injuries included Henry Frey's burst blood vessel in the eye and Bert Wakefield's black eye.

At 2 p.m. there was a baseball game between Galt and Stockton, both teams in the California League, at Paraiso Park. The Tokay Band provided musical entertainment. At 4 p.m., there was a band concert.

At 6 p.m. the "parade of Horribles" began downtown. This burlesque pageant was a regular feature of community events during Lodi's early history and provided an excuse for Lodi men to dress up in hilarious fashion and poke harmless fun at all.

The Tokay Band started off the parade of misfits. Next, Lodi's popular druggist Otto Weihe portrayed President William Taft seated on a steamroller. Other parade participants included Judge George Steele and Constable Floyd who rode a horse built for two. S. E. Wright dressed as the striking Goddess of Liberty and held a shield in one hand and a pitchfork in the other hand. An old surrey that had seen better days was driven through Lodi with the sign: "We're from Woodbridge and 'dam' glad of it."

A spectacular fireworks show began at 8:30 p.m. An expert from the fireworks factory oversaw the production with many colorful firecrackers and fountains shot high above the crowd downtown.

Following the fireworks, two 20-piece orchestras provided music for a dance on Lodi's paved streets, brilliantly illuminated by the city's new streetlights.

The only thing that marred the special day was an accident just before 6 p.m. when two oncoming Central California Traction line railcars collided north of Stockton. George Mefret, a Stockton musician returning from a performance in Lodi, was killed when he was thrown from his railcar onto the tracks and run over by the train. Ten others were hurt.