Hometown Traditions of Dunbar, West Virginia: The Toilet Bowl Parade

Not my hometown, but growing up I always heard stories about my father's hometown of Dunbar, West Virginia. Dunbar is a small town in the middle of nowhere, and the stories were always to rediculous that we never believed my dad until we saw it with out own eyes. None of these photos are my own, my Dad never took photos and we haven't been back to his hometown since my grandparents died in the 90s.

The Toilet Bowl Parade took place every year on Thanksgiving day and it was the most Redneck thing I had ever seen. The parade featured a few of the same floats every year, and every single float was toilet themed. One was a pick up truck carrying the winners of the Miss Toilet Bowl beauty pageant. The winner was crowned Miss Toilet Bowl, and she was attended by the runner-ups: Miss Cesspool, and Miss Plunger. The Parade was always closed by Santa on a four wheeler.

After the parade, was the toilet bowl football game. The town of Dunbar was split in half by a railroad track, this determined what team the players played for. One team was called the River Rats, the other the Foothills. This football game had no rules. My dad told me stories of people playing with umbrellas, wearing spiked armor, and more. My dad's stories were always a wild redneck wild ride and I wish I had my own images to show you guys.