Magna 4th of July parade 2014

Pleasant Green Circa 1920. Notice the Pleasant Green ward building in the background. Main Street facing east. Photo taken near today's 8700 West.
Used by permission, Utah State Historical Society, all rights reserved.

     If anything can be said about Magna (historic Pleasant Green) it is that we certainly love our parades. Rick Duckworth, a generational Magna resident, history lover, and president of the Magna History Club said not only is our parade known to be, at times, one of the largest in the state, but to us it's a "family reunion."
     Though this day commemorates 238 years of our nation's independence, this month we commemorate 140 years since this pioneer town of Pleasant Green was established, July 21, 1874. The pioneer spirit burns bright still in our hearts. Many of today's residents are descendents of the original pioneer settlers of Coonville and Millstone Point, which later became Pleasant Green (popularly known as "Magna").

Historic Pleasant Green Main Street. Notice the Empress Theatre on the lower left. Photo courtesy of Sylvia Sutton Sharp.

Historic Pleasant Green Main Street. Notice the original Magna Elementary (later Webster Elementary) behind the trees. Photo courtesy of Sylvia Sutton Sharp.

     The following photographs aren't as old, but they do show the ever-changing character of Main Street. We often take the present for granted and find ourselves surprised when it disappears into the past.

Parade circa 1991. Photo courtesy of the Magna Times.

July 4th 2014

1990s Photo courtesy of the Magna Times

July 4th 2014

Many things can change in two decades, yet many things can stay the same. Notice the Perk Dry Cleaners to the left and the Gem marquee to the right. This was a Christmas parade, possibly mid-nineteen eighties. Photo courtesy of the Magna Times.

July 4th 2014

Notice the small park at the left next to the dry cleaners. Both are now gone, and the library is now in their place. Photo courtesy of the Magna Times.

State senator Daniel Thather: Magna's senator, a man who doesn't quit, let alone hardly rests. He fights for the kind of government that will work for us, standing against those who would assume that we work for the government. With every step he takes and every day he spends on the hill, he carries that spirit of the Declaration of Independence that we celebrate: the Spirit of '76.  

     "Now I take my responsibility as a senator very seriously.  I think that my primary obligation is to protect people. Sometimes that means protecting people from the government. I don't represent the government, I represent the people. When the government steps out of bounds, there is nobody that can step them down. There is no one that can intercede. When Salt Lake County-- I'll tell you, half the reason that I ran for office in the first place was because of the response that I got from the person that had been representing us in the senate, when I asked him what he was going to do about the police fee that Salt Lake County dropped on Magna. Salt Lake County broke the law to do that. They violated tax law by calling a tax a fee. But here's the problem: even though it was blatantly obvious that they broke the law, there's only one entity with the authority to make them stop, and that's the state. Only the state can make the county stop when it's out of bounds. In this particular case we had a senator who felt..."well...you know...whatever the county does, that's not my problem. I should let the county do whatever they like. I'm sorry. I couldn't stand for that.        

     "So the very first thing that I did when I decided that by golly somebody has to stick up for us, and if nobody is going to run, I guess it's going to be me, I made a commitment that I was going to walk every precinct. I knocked so many doors it was ridiculous. I wore out three pairs of shoes." 

--State Senator Daniel Thatcher.

     

Christmas parade circa 1984 or 1985. It was around this time that many of the buildings along the historic Pleasant Green Main Street (popularly known as Magna) were demolished. Courtesy of the Magna Times.

4th of July 2014.

Early 1990s Courtesy of the Magna Times.

4th of July 2014. The celebrated Cyprus High School Spinnakers. More than a tradition, this institution boasts generations. Main Street hasn't known a 4th of July without their swinging swords since Cyprus has had a drill team.

        Though another parade has been added to history, the experience and the fun won't be forgotten. Buildings and landmarks will come and go, but it is each other who we celebrate; it's the greatness that comes from small things as we choose to build each other up, instead of tearing each other down that we celebrate. We celebrate the freedom to become anything we choose according to how hard we work, and we celebrate the freedom to take such roads as long as that freedom can be preserved. We celebrate the on-going fight against the forces that would keep us from realizing our highest potential, the fight laid out clearly and the lines drawn in the Declaration of Independence.

Carolyn Richards and daughter, Cassie, working to make sure the 5k goes smoothly.

Joseph Hastings, the tired runner.

The Lion's Club breakfast, special thanks to Smith's.

Pete Renaldi

Sue Duckworth, Magna's State Representative, a generational resident with a special love four our history and our community. Through the toughest of times, the Duckworth family has continued to serve our community.

Sebastian Randazzo, owner of Nonna's Pizza.

Storm, owner of Art On You studios.

Folks show support for candidate Bill Both, running for state representative District 22.

Miss Magna

Rick Duckworth speaks to Senator Daniel Thatcher

Cyprus dancers strut in the heat.

Magna Fourth of July Parade 2012

     Magna parades stand out in the fun, generational memories of Magna residents. These are special times when neighbors and friends compete for shade and greet each other with smiles and enthusiastic hand shakes. It's hard to tell who's liberal or conservative or what religious creed they might hold to. You might see a Mormon helping support the Spaghetti dinner hosted by Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church or a baptist throwing in a few bucks to help local needy families. We all hold something in common, a love for our community and historical heritage.
     A fictional Magna Forth of July parade (as it might have been in 1984) will appear in part III of my new serial novel, In Older Worlds. Magna itself, the physical setting not the people, will act as a setting for a strange, dark fantasy/horror. It's written in a way that a person who grew up in Magna at that time would recognize and understand. For those who have never seen Magna, it will be like an introduction to a great, personal friend.
     I'd like to send out a special thank you to Todd and Carolyn Richards for your dedication and service to Magna and the Fourth of July committee--they even stored the Miss Magna float in their yard when no one else would take it! 
     As for these photos, taken today, with love, enjoy them! And God Bless.
     Robert Goble

Magna Fourth of July parade possibly late 1940s to early 1950s. Notice the Empress Theater in the background. Photographer unknown.

Magna Fourth of July parade 2012. Magna Mountain Riders. Notice the same Empress Theater as in the above photo.

Town Councilman Todd Richards walks the parade route along 8560 West near Brockbank Junior High minutes before the parade starts.

Kylie Lanktree, Miss Magna 2012, stands with Little Miss, Elle Crossly in front of Magna Elementary on 3100 South minutes before the parade starts. Ken's Sandwich Shoppe, though not in the photo, is just to the west.

Miss Magna royalty First Attendant Marky Johnson with her Little Miss, Taila Robinson in front of new Magna library on Main Street.

 Miss Magna royalty Second Attendant Jill Cardenas with her Little Miss, Jensen Brian in front of the new Magna library on Main Street.

Miss Magna director Ryan Egbert along parade route on 8560 West near Brockbank Jr. High. His wife, Bonnie Egbert, formerly Bonnie Goble (Miss Magna 1994), is also director.

Folks gather along the parade route in front of Brockbank Jr. High.

Lake Ridge Elementary students carry the flag past 3010 South. Looking west toward Cyprus High School. The Cyprus C rises proudly on Thead's Peak in the background. 

Jazz band, Happy Valley Strutters, plays an upbeat tune dedicated in memory of Norm Fitzgerald, a well loved Town Councilman who had recently passed.

Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon along 8560 West.

The crowd fills the street at the corner of 2700 South and 8560 West as the parade approaches. Photo looking east. Notice the Grub Box sign in the background. The Grub Box will appear in my new novel, In Older Worlds.

Rod and Joline Walgamott, best known for their tireless work on the board of the Oquirrh Hills Performing Arts Alliance, and as Atlas holds the world on his back, so Rod and Joline hold the Empress Theater.

Daughter and mother, Alyx Pattison and Arlene Pattison. Alyx, a former student of Cyprus High School and member of the dance company under the auspices of Lori Rupp, is now a partner of the Chicago law firm, Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP . Arlene, a former resident of Garfield and long-time resident of Magna, is appreciated for her service with the Community Council.

John Alfred recently returned from serving as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Albuquerque, NM. He shows his prowess as a horseman. For the record, the horse is steadily moving along Main Street. He isn't standing still.

Brian and Tamara Cruz and family. Brian can boast a heritage to the earliest settlers of the Magna area (Pleasant Green and Coonville) through the Sadlers and Hardmans, to Abraham Coon, an early pioneer. Coon's Canyon in the Oquirrh Mountains is named after him. Lehi Nephi Hardman was the first LDS Bishop of the Pleasant Green Precinct. He had chartered the Pleasant Green Cemetery (Cemetery Hill) in 1882.

Parade-watchers braving the sun with smiles. Main Street looking west. Oquirrh Mountains in the background.

Jim and Shellie Bezzant on the shady 8500 West near the Peel Funeral Home and just North of Brockbank Jr. High. Jim Remembers Fourth of July parades all the way back to the sixties and seventies. His father is Dick Bezzant who has served the community for many years, including sitting on the Magna Water Board.

Main Street looking west. Notice the kennecott power plant that has stood on the hill since the 1940s.

Cyprus High School Football.

Only Cyprus High School cheerleaders get a military escort.

Cyprus High School student body officers. My daughter, Tara Goble can barely be seen with her arm raised in the boat.

The Cyprus High School Spinnakers near the new library on Main Street. 

Parade route farther west near the old Dyches Rexall Drug Store.

John and Jackie Sudbury serve as announcers near Magna Oil Changes Etc. The whole Sudbury family is well known and loved in Magna. John is a face any sports fanatic in Utah should know, but by far he is known and loved by so many youth he has coached and supported in football and other sports.

Brandt Goble is well known and loved in Magna. He has run for office and served with unions. He's currently the president of  West United Soccer, helping coach and train kids in an international sport. His family's influence is also historical and influential in the area sharing heritage to Lehi Nephi Hardman and Abraham Coon. 

Michael Jensen has a long resume of service to Magna and Salt Lake County, including Salt Lake Council Councilman for District 2 and Chief of the Unified Fire Authority. 

What's a parade without Chinese dragons?

Daniel Thatcher, State Senator District 12, keeps Magna close to his heart. This active young senator chairs two committees and is an active influence in ten others. He frequently keeps his ear close to the voters by attending local meetings and staying in touch with many residents. You can often speak to him face to face at West Side Matters meetings.

State Representative District 22, Sue Duckworth is well-loved among the Magna residents. The Duckworth family is known for many years of service to the community and state. Her husband Carl also served as representative. 

The Rice family smiles in the sun. Laurie Rice has served in the PTA at Orchard Elementary.

Donnie Sweazey rumbles past in his catchy purple hot-rod. He's best known for his business, Oil Changes Etc.

Parade watchers sit in the shadow of the old Gem Theater. Many long-time residents have fond memories of the old-fashioned seating, stage under the screen, red curtains, and pickle jar that sat on the glass counter. The last movie I saw there was Raiders of the Lost Ark. The Gem will appear in my new novel, In Older Worlds, as it was still showing movies in 1984. Remember the family movie nights on Mondays?

Another shot of Main Street looking east. The Ethnic and Mining museum is nearby.

Once again, a special thanks to Todd and Carolyn Richards and the Fourth of July committee for a wonderful and successful parade!