At 6:30 p.m. this Saturday, the first floats of the Halloween Parade will pull out of the Lincoln Middle School parking lot at Schwarz and West Streets and turn onto St. Louis Street. Eleven days later, on the afternoon of Wednesday, November 11, that parking lot is where the Veterans Day Parade ends.
Both parades use the same downtown streets. Different organizations host them, and one runs the loop forward while the other runs it in reverse. If you know which way each one travels, you know where the crowd will build, where the parade ends, and which block will be the busiest.
One route, two directions
The Edwardsville/Glen Carbon Chamber of Commerce organizes the Halloween Parade, and American Legion Post 199 hosts the Veterans Day Parade. Side by side, the two routes line up like this:
| Halloween Parade | Veterans Day Parade | |
|---|---|---|
| When | Saturday, Oct. 31, 6:30 p.m. | Wednesday, Nov. 11, 3 p.m. |
| Host | Edwardsville/Glen Carbon Chamber of Commerce | American Legion Post 199 |
| Starts | Lincoln Middle School lot, Schwarz & West Streets | Near the Eden Church lot, 900 block of North Main Street |
| Middle legs | East on St. Louis Street to Vandalia Street, then north on North Main Street | South on Main, west on Vandalia Street, south on West Street |
| Ends | High Street on North Main | Lincoln Middle School parking lot |
The routes aren't exact mirrors. The Halloween Parade takes St. Louis Street out of the school lot, and the Veterans Day Parade comes back down West Street. Both run through the Vandalia and Main intersection and the stretch of North Main above it, so the core of downtown hosts both. On Halloween, North Main is the last leg. On Veterans Day, it's the first.
Saturday night, the route runs north
Because the Halloween Parade ends at High Street, the heaviest traffic of the night collects at the north end of the route. The Chamber's 2026 night-of-parade details are direct about it. Parade vehicle congestion near High Street puts participants and spectators at risk, so float drivers have to keep going north past the end point before anyone gets off. The Chamber's instruction to participants reads:
"All parade vehicles must continue north on Main Street beyond the parade end-point (which is at High Street) prior to unloading passengers."
That means North Main past High Street keeps moving for a while after the last float crosses the finish. The rest of the evening's logistics are on the same Chamber page:
- Parking: the "super lot" east of Main Street, plus side streets along the route.
- Accessible parking: the Jerry's Tire Sales lot is reserved for handicap parking.
- Restrooms: portapots at Walgreens, First Mid Bank & Trust, and Big Daddy's.
- Warming center: Newsong Fellowship at 201 St. Louis Street opens to the public as a handicap-accessible warming center with restrooms from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., and hot chocolate is available.
- Weather: the parade goes on rain or shine unless officials determine there is a public safety risk.
Newsong Fellowship sits on St. Louis Street, which is the parade's first leg after it leaves the school lot. That puts the warming center, the hot chocolate and the indoor restrooms at the start of the route, a long way from the busy High Street end. If you're bringing small children or anyone who gets cold quickly, a spot on St. Louis Street keeps all of that close.
If you'd rather stay home, the City of Edwardsville streams the parade live on its Facebook page, and the video stays up afterward on the city's YouTube channel. Winners in all five judging categories, including grand champion, will be announced by the Edwardsville Intelligencer, and Fan Favorite voting opens Sunday, November 1, on the Chamber's Facebook page.
Veterans Day, the route runs south
The Veterans Day Parade steps off at 3 p.m. on November 11, which falls on a Wednesday this year. The city's listing describes it as an annual parade held downtown on the federal holiday. It forms near the Eden Church parking lot in the 900 block of North Main Street, well north of where the Halloween floats will have stopped.
From there it heads south on Main, turns west on Vandalia Street, then goes south on West Street and finishes in the Lincoln Middle School lot. On Halloween the North Main blocks are the end of the route, where the crowd peaks. Eleven days later they're the opening stretch, and the parade wraps up at the school lot where the Halloween Parade started. The 3 p.m. start also means the Veterans Day Parade runs in daylight on a weekday afternoon, unlike the Saturday-night Halloween Parade.
November's weekends move to the edges of town
Both parades use downtown streets, but the weekend events on either side of Veterans Day are held out on the edges of town. The Land of Goshen Community Market wrapped up its 2026 season on October 17. This year it set up around the Edwardsville Public Library in City Park, with vendors along Kansas and Park Streets and in the Public Works parking lot. With the market done for the year, the next two weekend events are at Watershed Nature Center and Edwardsville High School.
- Saturday, Nov. 7, 8 to 11 a.m.: Partners for Pets holds Wags at Watershed, a community dog walk at Watershed Nature Center, 1591 Tower Avenue. The walk honors the memory of veterinarian Dr. Brent Leh. Registration supports the Partners for Pets shelter's work rescuing abandoned pets in Madison County, and the group will have an information tent and some adoptable pets on site. Registration details are on the Partners for Pets website.
- Wednesday, Nov. 11, 3 p.m.: the Veterans Day Parade takes the downtown route southbound, as described above.
- Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 14 and 15: the Edwardsville Band Boosters' 34th Annual Edwardsville Arts & Crafts Fair fills Edwardsville High School at 6161 Center Grove Road with more than 350 booths of handmade arts, crafts and specialty items. Hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.
The two weekend events serve different crowds. Wags at Watershed is an early-morning walk that wraps up by 11 a.m., and the craft fair is an all-day shopping event spread over two days. A volunteer group with a permit runs each one. Partners for Pets got permission to use Watershed Nature Center from the City's Recreation, Arts & Special Events Board. The craft fair is organized by the band boosters.
With more than 350 booths, the craft fair is the largest collection of vendors in town between the last Goshen Market and December. For anyone shopping for the holidays, it's the November weekend to put on the calendar early. The Saturday session opens an hour earlier than Sunday's.
December 5 brings it back to City Park
After that, the season comes back to the park where the Goshen Market closed. The city's Winter Market Festival & Tree Lighting Ceremony is Saturday, December 5, at City Park, 101 S. Buchanan Street, and admission is free. The day runs on three set times:
- Noon to 5 p.m.: Winter Market, with holiday shopping, entertainment, food and drinks.
- 1 to 4 p.m.: visits with Santa.
- 5:30 p.m.: tree lighting.
Between the market's close and the tree lighting there's a 30-minute gap, and the city has a plan for it. The fire pits are lit shortly before the market wraps up, s'mores kits will be available, and the s'mores are free. If you want a spot near the tree, come before 5 p.m. and wait it out at the fire pits instead of arriving right at 5:30.
That puts the Winter Market's fire pits and Santa visits in the same City Park where Goshen Market vendors set up along Kansas and Park Streets until October 17. In the weeks between, the events go up and down Main Street twice and spend two weekends out at Tower Avenue and Center Grove Road.
If you're mapping out these weekends, or you'd like to know which downtown blocks get the most foot traffic on parade nights, Delores W Doussard and the Dream Team know these streets well. We're happy to talk through what any part of downtown Edwardsville is like on a parade night or a market Saturday. Schedule a Free Consultation and we'll walk the route with you.
