The Portland Rose Society, founded by
Georgiana Pittock and friends in 1888, began with a backyard rose show in Pittock's garden. The annual fundraising event drew more crowds each year. By 1904, the rose society was hosting its annual rose show along with additional festivities, including a parade and pageant. In 1907, the Portland Rose Festival Association was
incorporated and Portland hosted its first official Portland Rose Festival. The Grand Floral Parade is the centerpiece of the festival and the second largest all-floral parade in the United States after the
Tournament of Roses Parade. The first parade, in 1907, was called the Rose Carnival, but eventually came to be known as the Rose Festival Parade and later still the Grand Floral Parade. The 1907 festival also included an "electric parade" with illuminated
floats; this evolved into the Merrykhana Parade but after a two-season suspension was renamed the
Starlight Parade in 1976. but the term "princesses" was reinstated in January 2007. A college scholarship is awarded to a 14-member "royalty". Starting in 2009, the Rose Festival Foundation opened one place on the court to someone from a school outside the Portland city limits. There are drivers for the Princesses, who are chosen from each high school. The first African American driver (escort) was Sam Whitney from Benson High School in 1954. A Junior Rose Festival, focused on children, began unofficially in 1921, on the city's east side, and included its own parade and junior court. It became an official part of the Rose Festival in 1936. During
Fleet Week, ships from
United States Navy,
Coast Guard,
Army Corps of Engineers and the
Royal Canadian Navy dock along the seawall of
Tom McCall Waterfront Park. The festival also hosts the Starlight Parade, a fireworks display, and carnival rides along the Portland waterfront, among other events.
Dragon boat races on the Willamette River have been included every year since 1989. The
Golden Rose Ski Classic is an annual ski race originating in 1936. It is the oldest known organized ski race in America, and is the only
USSA-sanctioned summer race. No festival was held in 1917 and 1918 because of
World War I or from 1942 through 1945 because of
World War II. From 2007 to 2016, the festival began with the
82nd Avenue of Roses Parade. The parade was cancelled in 2017, but returned in 2018.
COVID-19 pandemic concerns canceled the 2020 and 2021 parades, but the parade would return in 2022.
Road rage incident On June 10, 2023, 43-year-old Sidney Mecham, drove his
Chevrolet Avalanche through the parade in a
road rage incident. Dashcam footage from his own vehicle captured him screaming about blocked exits,
flipping off workers, plowing through barricades, and nearly hitting spectators, including children. No one was injured. Mecham was soon arrested after evading police, and was indicted on reckless endangerment charges a few days later. On October 1, 2024, Mecham pleaded guilty to 15 counts of reckless endangerment, reckless driving, and two counts of unlawful use of a vehicle as a weapon, and was sentenced to five years imprisonment. Mecham claimed to have regretted the incident, calling it an "impulsive act". == One More Time Around Again Marching Band ==