The Great School Parade of 1892
Over 400 Yakima students marched through the streets to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the discovery of America, complete with flags and patriotic salutes.
The public schools of this city appropriately celebrated the 400th anniversary of America’s discovery on last Friday afternoon, October 21st. The children, more than 400 strong, bearing the flags of Italy, Spain and the United States, met at the corner of Second and Chestnut streets, in front of The Herald office, and after parading on the principal streets formed in a hollow rectangle on Yakima avenue, where each school in turn saluted the flag.
“We give our heads and our hearts and our hands to our country—one country, one language, one flag.”
This display of civic nationalism at the turn of the century shows how public education was used to instill identity in the new state. The intersection of Second and Chestnut remains a core area of Downtown Yakima today, though the city has changed immensely since this march.
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