Has the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade ever been cancelled?

The Thanksgiving Day Parade will take place in New York City tomorrow, with millions tuned in at home to watch the spectacle unfold. Giant floats, marching bands, and dancers in bedazzled costumes, the tradition dates back to 1924 and only three times has it ever been cancelled.

The show will get underway at 8:30 AM ET, and is expected to end around noon. The coverage can be followed live on NBC, or the network’s streaming platform, Peacock.

The orgins of the parade

Macy’s, the department store, is said to have started the parade to show off all the great gifts holiday shoppers could pick up for their friends and family at the locations scattered across the country. However, it would not be until 1947 that the event was broadcast to televisions, giving the parade a whole new meaning.

The impact of World War II

However, earlier in that decade, 1942, 1943, and 1944, the parade had been cancelled because of World War II and the need to conserve critical materials like helium and aluminum for the war effort. The war was a test of national strength and resilience and as young men were sent to fight oversees, life in the United States changed, and the luxuries of the past had to be put on hold.

Over the 100 years the parade has run, those three were the only years it was cancelled. Even in 2020, a scaled back parade with no public audience was carried out, to give viewers at home some semblance of normalcy, even if their tables were less crowded.