2025 Award Winners

Grand Prize

Rancho los Dos Potros

Mayor’s Award

Optimists Club

Spirit Award

More Church

Ruthe Jackson Award

Baloons with a Twist

Director’s Award

Texas Appliances Supply, Inc.

Business Entries

1st place – Texas Appliances Supply, Inc.
2nd place – Baloons with a Twist
3rd place – Treehugger Tree Service

Cheer Teams

1st place – Martin High School
2nd place – Arlington High School
3rd place – Seguin High School

Community Groups

1st place – The Cozy Catfe
2nd place – Theatre Arlington
3rd place – Arlington Mustangs

Decorated Vehicles

1st place – North Texas Jeep Club
2nd place – DFW Birthday Parades
3rd place – Babes Chicken Dinner House

Drill Teams

1st place – Martin High School Sundancers
2nd place – Sam Houston High School Tex-Annes
3rd place – Newman International Academy

Marching Bands

1st place – Arlington High School Band
2nd place – Martin High School Band
3rd place – Juan Seguin High School Band

Mounted Units

1st place – Tarrant County Sheriffs Possee
2nd place – Arlington Police Mounted Unit
3rd place – General Motors/United Autoworkers Riding Team

Music

1st place – AHS Alumni Band

Public Safety/First Responders

1st place – SearchOne Rescue Team
2nd place – DFW Airport – Department of Public Safety

Service Organizations

1st place – Tarrant County College Southeast
2nd place – Arlington Board of REALTORS^© Community Service Foundation
3rd place – Lucretia Council Cochran Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution

Spiritual Groups

1st place – More Church
2nd place – Men Serving God
3rd place – St. John the Apostle United Methodist Church

Vintage Vehicles

1st place – Fabulous 37’s
2nd place – Gerrett Smelker
3rd place – Christian Classic Cruisers

Youth Entries

1st place – St. Maria Goretti
2nd place – Arlington/Midlothian Attack Hockey Club
3rd place – North Texas Panthers Football & Cheer Organization

Arlington Independence Day Parade

Friday, July 4th at 9 AM in Downtown Arlington

The Arlington Independence Day Parade is the largest in Texas and one of the biggest in the United States. As the longest-running annual event in Arlington, it has been named the Best Parade of Its Size in Texas for the second consecutive year by the Texas Festivals and Events Association.

Shining Bright Since ’65, Arlington Independence Day Parade, Diamond Jubilee

The 2025 Arlington Independence Day Parade theme is “Shining Bright Since ’65, Arlington Independence Day Parade, Diamond Jubilee.”

Sponsor the Parade

The parade association is a nonprofit funded by community organizations, businesses, and individuals, and we couldn’t continue this 60 year Arlington tradition without folks like you!

Contact Us

Contact the parade committee at 817-330-9USA or at info@arlington4th.org.

Sponsorship Information

~ SPECTATORS ~

NOTICE

On Friday, July 4, 2025 between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. Arlington’s annual 4th of July Parade will be taking place along the following route: W. Mitchell St., N. Spaniolo Dr., UTA Blvd., S. West St., W. South St., S. Center St., back to W. Mitchell St., S. Pecan St., Doug Russell Rd. ending at UTA South 40 parking lot. Vehicular traffic will not be allowed on the parade route’s streets between 5:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. All residents living within the parade route that will need to leave their residence in a car that morning should do so before 5:00 a.m.

AVISO

El jueves 5 de julio de 2025 en el horario de 9:00 a. m. y 12:00 p. m. El desfile anual del 4 de julio de Arlington se llevará a cabo a lo largo de la siguiente ruta: W. Mitchell St., N. Spaniolo Dr., UTA Blvd., S. West St., W. South St., S. Center St., atrás hasta W. Mitchell St., S. Pecan St., Doug Russell Rd. terminando en el estacionamiento UTA South 40. No se permitirá el tránsito vehicular en las calles del recorrido del desfile entre las 5:00 a. m. y las 12:00 p. m. Todos los residentes que vivan dentro de la ruta del desfile y necesiten salir de su residencia en automóvil esa mañana deberán hacerlo antes de las 5:00 a. m.

For more information on parking around the UTA campus.

More Info on Parking

Download Map PDF

Parade Schedule

7:00 a.m	POLICE CLOSE PARADE ROUTE Firecracker 5K Begins
7:45 a.m.	Scout Color Guards deploy along route
9:00 a.m.	National Anthem
9:03 a.m.	Parade Steps Off at Intersection of West St. and Mitchell St.
11-11:30 a.m.	Parade Ends

Shuttles

Want to avoid heavy traffic and the hassle of finding a parking spot on Parade morning? UT ARLINGTON will be providing free shuttle service between Maverick Stadium, 1307 W Mitchell St., and the Parade Assembly Area located at the corner of Mitchell St. and West St. The shuttles will be running from 6:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and are available for parade participants and spectators.

Parade FAQs

There are over 120 entries this year
There is no selling or soliciting along the parade route.
It will be warm. Please drink plenty of water in the days before the parade.
The parade map on Facebook and Instagram has parking locations.
Please pay attention to all directions by law enforcement and route marshals.
If you see something, say something. Let’s all stay safe!
Wear Red, White, and Blue

Yes! Arlington Firecracker 5K Blasts Off at 7 a.m. July 4!

Pull on your running shoes for the third annual Arlington Independence Day Parade Firecracker 5K! The course will run the same route as the parade so you can stake out your spot for the parade. Sign up early to be sure to get your Firecraker 5K t-shirt!

Sign Up Now

2023

2024

The Arlington Independence Day Parade is Proud to Announce Our 2025 Grand Marshal - Chris Cassidy!

National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation

Chris Cassidy

President and CEO

BACKGROUND

In August 2021, the Board of Directors for the National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation selected Chris Cassidy to be President and CEO, where he now leads the project to build the iconic Museum, Monument, and Institute. Our team is on a mission to inspire America, promoting the belief that everyone is born with the potential to be extraordinary. Chris is the embodiment of this truth. From humble beginnings in the upper Northeast, he chose a life of service to country. First, as an elite Navy SEAL and then as NASA’s Chief Astronaut, he has always put others first and given back to the country that gave him boundless opportunities.

EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION

Christopher J. Cassidy was born in Salem, Massachusetts on January 4, 1970 and considers nearby York, Maine, where he grew up, to be his hometown. A graduate of York High School, Chris completed Naval Academy Prep School in Newport, Rhode lsland in 1989 and received a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1993. He later received a Master of Science in Ocean Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and has Honorary PhDs from Husson University and the University of Maine at Augusta.

MILITARY SERVICE

Captain Cassidy is a retired U.S. Navy SEAL. During his service, he was awarded the Bronze Star with combat ‘V’ and received a second Bronze Star for combat leadership service in Afghanistan. In 2004, the platoon he commanded was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation for a nine-day operation at the Zharwar Kili Cave on the Afghanistan/Pakistan border.

NASA YEARS

Cassidy was selected as an astronaut in 2004. He is a veteran of three space flights and ten spacewalks. Chris has flown to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavor and the Russian Soyuz spacecraft. He has accumulated 377 days in space, including his most recent six-month spaceflight in 2020. In 2015, he became NASA’s 14th Chief Astronaut and served in this capacity for two years.