It was hot, sunny, colorful, loud, patriotic ... and it was a lot of fun.

Thousands of people lined the historic parade route through downtown Bristol, to once again cheer for the oldest continuous Independence Day celebration in America. As has become custom in recent years, spectators blended with the procession, shaking hands and hugging marchers, posing for selfies, and high-fiving marchers as they passed.

People young and old lining the 2.5-mile parade route got into the holiday spirit as veterans and servicemen, community-organized floats and local musicians followed the red, white and blue stripes through the downtown district. Children were seen running up to say hello to Winnie the Pooh; Shriner Clowns clapped hands as they zipped their way down the street. People stopped to take pictures with the Clydesdale horses; others danced with the Mariachi Internacionale band, feeling the rhythm and beat. 

“You gain energy from everybody else in the crowd,” said Michelle Swallow, visiting from San Jose, California.

It was a sight that lifelong Bristol resident Julie Heath knew her friend John Charpentier needed to see. Living in Woonsocket, Mr. Charpentier had never come before to see the parade, but sitting with Ms. Heath and her family along the water on Hope Street and watching the entire spectacle unfold, he said, was magical.

“For me, this is better than being in Disney World,” Mr. Charpentier said.

With family visiting from Louisville, Kentucky, Tiverton resident Ceci Sartore felt the same way, knowing there was only one place she could bring them in order to properly commemorate the holiday.

“They couldn’t come to Rhode Island from Kentucky on the Fourth and not come to the Bristol parade,” Ms. Sartore said.

While people certainly had their individual, favorite aspects of the parade — from the marching bands to the Miss and Little Miss Fourth of July float to the jolly Uncle Same walking around on stilts — the most celebrated were the military and veterans units. Cheers of thanks continuously erupted as they marched or rode on past; a contingent of 250 personnel from the U.S. Navy broke ranks frequently, shaking hands or taking pictures with the crowd, proving that the spirit of the traditional military, civic and firemen’s parade is still alive.

“Today, everybody agrees,” said Rev. Elizabeth Habecker, “and we say thank you.”