"Snow or shine we will celebrate!" That is the last line of the Oxford Chamber of Commerce's rules for this year's Christmas Parade, under the rule that keeps Santa off the floats and the one that bans throwing candy. The parade is on Saturday, December 5, at 1 p.m. Its theme is "Stars, Stripes & Christmas Lights: Oxford 150 & America 250."
That theme matters in a village that is 150 years old this year. The Oxford DDA's Soup and Sweet Stroll is the night before, on Friday, December 4. Together the two events make the first weekend of December the biggest downtown gathering of the anniversary's final stretch. Both of them end in the same place, Centennial Park.
A parade theme that goes back to 1876
The Village of Oxford was incorporated on January 13, 1876, according to a historical Oxford Leader article. That makes 2026 the sesquicentennial year. In April, the Oxford Leader reported that Village Council Member Regina Nock had organized and scheduled most of the anniversary events. The paper named her the village's America250/Oxford150 liaison, since the local celebration is lined up with the national one.
Centennial Park was at the center of those plans from the start. The April kickoff, Roots and Renewal, was set to include DDA cleanup teams downtown and on the Polly Ann Trail. It also called for unveiling a sesquicentennial tree and plaque at Centennial Park and giving residents 250 free native saplings. A July 9 celebration in the same park was planned around unveiling Oxford's 1976 time capsule and starting a new one.
The anniversary started in that park, and December's two biggest downtown events finish there too.
The calendar from the car wash ribbon to the trolley
The holiday stretch runs about three weeks, with one event to open it and one to close it:
| Date | Event | Host | Time | Where it lands |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Friday, Nov. 20 | Clean Express Auto Wash grand reopening | Oxford Chamber | 10 to 11 a.m. | 153 S. Washington St. |
| Saturday, Nov. 28 | Small Business Saturday | Oxford DDA | All day | Downtown shops |
| Friday, Dec. 4 | Soup and Sweet Stroll | Oxford DDA | 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. | Washington St., then Centennial Park |
| Saturday, Dec. 5 | Christmas Parade, Oxford 150 & America 250 | Oxford Chamber | 1 to 3:30 p.m. | Crawford St. to East St., Santa in Centennial Park |
| Saturday, Dec. 12 | Downtown Polar Express | Oxford DDA | 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. | Downtown |
The Friday and Saturday in the middle of that table are back to back, and they belong together. The stroll covers Washington Street on Friday evening. The parade covers the side streets on Saturday afternoon.
Friday, December 4: soup on Washington Street, lights at the park
The DDA's 2026 listing for the Soup and Sweet Stroll runs from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. Visitors sample soups and treats from local restaurants and businesses. An Oakland County Moms roundup of 2026 holiday events places this year's stroll at Centennial Park. It lists school choirs, a petting farm, soups and sweets on Washington Street, a visit from Santa, and a tree lighting to close the night. The roundup gives the lighting time as 8 p.m. in one place and 8:30 p.m. in another.
Last year's program shows how the evening is built. The Oxford Leader's preview of the 2025 stroll said it opened with the lighting of the Obrecht Bridge and that food service started around 4:45 p.m. The 2025 tickets were $13 each or five for $55, and each covered four soup samples plus sweets. The Leader counted 10 soups from nine participating restaurants. Children's crafts, carolers, school choirs, Santa and photo spots filled the rest of the night, and the tree lighting at Centennial Park came at 8 p.m. In 2024, the DDA described a lanyard ticket that covered five soups and unlimited sweets, with hot chocolate stations and a chocolate fountain.
Those 2025 and 2024 prices and soup counts are last year's and the year before's. For 2026 details, the DDA lists 248-628-9941 and [email protected].
The evening has kept the same shape each year. It starts at the bridge, works down Washington Street, and ends with the tree lighting in the park.
Saturday, December 5: the parade is watched from East Street
The next afternoon, the Chamber's parade follows a route of less than a mile. It does not run along the Washington Street storefronts. The 2026 parade map starts the route on Crawford Street and ends it on East Street. It asks spectators to "please watch the parade from East St sidewalks only." The map also marks Hovey, Mechanic, Pontiac, Burdick, Mill, Glaspie and Edison streets.
Details from the Chamber's parade registration page and the map that are useful for the afternoon:
- The event runs from 1 to 3:30 p.m. Entrants start checking in at 11:30 a.m., and lineup is first come, first served.
- Santa is not on any float. The rules say he arrives at the end of the parade to greet children in Centennial Park.
- Candy is handed out, not thrown. The Chamber's rules give safety as the reason.
- Warm drinks are in the park. The map lists hot chocolate, coffee and cookies in Centennial Park while supplies last, from Tim Hortons, BIGGBY and Meijer, with one more provider still to be announced.
- Entrants park at the schools. The map marks staging and parking at Oxford Elementary, Daniel Axford Elementary and the Industrial Machine Products lot. First Baptist Church serves as parade lineup and warming station.
Each rule moves people the same way. Spectators stand on East Street, Santa skips the floats, and the drinks are in the park. When the last unit passes, the crowd heads to Centennial Park, the same lawn where the trees were lit the night before.
Entry registration is still open for floats, walking units and anyone who wants to march. Sponsors are also wanted. Questions and invoice requests go to [email protected]. A float built around the 150th theme fits the year.
The days around the weekend
The two weeks before the stroll are mostly about downtown businesses.
On Friday, November 20, the Chamber holds a ribbon-cutting from 10 to 11 a.m. for the grand reopening of Clean Express Auto Wash at 153 South Washington Street. The business was formerly Clean Hub Car Wash. The Chamber's listing mentions upgraded equipment, a new tunnel, eco-friendly washing and free self-serve vacuums, and everyone is welcome to attend.
Small Business Saturday follows on November 28. It runs all day, and the DDA is promoting it as a day to shop local downtown. The downtown Oxford gift card sold through the DDA works at a set list of businesses, which makes it an easy gift that keeps the money downtown. The DDA lists these participants:
- Blu Ivy
- Caveman&Pip
- Covered Wagon Saddlery
- Funky Monkey Toys
- GravCap Brewing
- HomeGrown Brewing Co
- Mainstream Boutique Oxford
- Niereschers Taxi
- Scots Toys
- Sick Pizza Company
- Sullivan's Public House
- The Boulevard Boutique & Home Collection
- The Oxford Tap
- Victoria's Bistro
- Whimsy Art Studio
With two toy stores, several boutiques, a saddlery, an art studio and a handful of restaurants and taprooms on that list, one card covers most of a holiday shopping list.
The Downtown Polar Express closes the stretch on Saturday, December 12, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The 2026 listing only gives the date and hours. In earlier years, the DDA's 2024 page described a trolley ride into downtown Oxford with a holiday market, the social district, restaurants and shopping. Riders age one and older needed a ticket. According to a 2025 Macaroni KID listing, the 2025 version picked riders up at the Legacy Center, 925 N. Lapeer Road. The trolley went through downtown to see Santa, and tickets were $13. The DDA's contact line at 248-628-9941 can confirm this year's pickup point and price.
That third Santa appearance falls a week after the parade and eight days after the stroll. For families who miss him in Centennial Park on December 5, the trolley is the next chance.
Emily Ford has sold homes around Oakland County for more than two decades, and her team follows village calendars like this one closely. If you plan to list in Oxford before or after the holidays, Sold by Emily can plan your listing photos, staging and showing schedule around downtown weekends like these. Schedule your free consultation.
