Gilbert, Arizona

These were laid in 1953 in conjunction with the new subdivision. The Gilbert Days Celebration fit perfectly after the streets were paved, and different volunteers aided the organization of the parade entrants. The tradition has continued for more than fifty years and is a highlight of the Town of Gilbert. Geneva Clay organized the early years of the Gilbert Days Parade. She served the com munity as a councilwoman, in the Gilbert Chamber of Commerce, and as a volunteer for a multitude of projects. Bob and Judy Lowry later managed the parade and Gilbert Days. Bob was also a councilman and Judy was President of the Gilbert Historical Society. We owe them all a great debt of gratitude. Thousands of people have participated in the Gilbert Days Parade.

Tom Clement, Mayor of Gilbert from 1947 to 1953, came to Gilbert in 1934. He is now ninety five years old. During his mayoral reign, the council agreed to put a sewer system into the town. It was a major infrastructure necessary for the community to become a modern city. In 1953, merchants Albert Serrano, Dan Valenzuela, and others decided to add some interest in Gilbert by creating a Cinco de Mayo Celebration. In the first years, it amounted to having a dance on Main Street but soon became a parade and a dance. The townspeople loved to come and see all their friends at these par ties each year. This festival was the beginning of the Gilbert Days Celebration that is now held on the third weekend in November. During the term of Mayor Kenyon Udall in 1956, all the streets in the town limits were paved. Prior to 1956, the only paved streets were Gilbert Road (Main Street), Elliot Road, and the two new streets in Gilbert Estates.

k Gilbert Days Parade

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