Sock hop, car show back for another year

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The Civil War monument on the Town Green in Prospect will be featured on this year's shirts for the 28th Annual Sock Hop and Car Show on Sunday. It is the 150th Anniversary of the Battle of Chancellorsville, Va., in which 18 Prospect soldiers served, with 13 of those killed, wounded or captured. The town installed a fence around the monument, and there will be a wreath to honor the casualties. –RA ARCHIVE
The Civil War monument on the Town Green in Prospect will be featured on this year’s shirts for the 28th Annual Sock Hop and Car Show on Sunday. It is the 150th Anniversary of the Battle of Chancellorsville, Va., in which 18 Prospect soldiers served, with 13 of those killed, wounded or captured. The town installed a fence around the monument, and there will be a wreath to honor the casualties. –RA ARCHIVE

PROSPECT — A special spotlight will be placed on the Civil War monument on the Green at this year’s Sock Hop and Car Show.

The monument with cars parked around it will be featured on shirts for the 28th Annual Sock Hop and Car Show, Mayor Robert Chatfield said. A wreath also will be on display at the monument to honor the 13 Prospect soldiers killed, wounded or captured at the Battle of Chancellorsville, Va., on May 1-5, 1863.

Vintage cars from the 1920s to the 1980s will roll into the venue at the Green on Sunday. The Sock Hop and Car Show will run from 1 to 6 p.m. There is no charge to display a vehicle, and no admission fee to enter. Trophies will be presented at 5:30 p.m. Bicycles and dogs are not allowed.

Almost 800 cars were displayed last year, with about 4,000 to 5,000 people typically attending, the mayor said.

Vehicles will be parked on the Green, where the monument stands in the center of the grassy area. A little wrought-iron fence, which cost $1,800, was installed around the monument, and the Public Works Department washed the base of it, he said.

This year marks the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Chancellorsville, in which 18 Prospect soldiers served. Of that number, five men were killed, five wounded and three taken as prisoners of war, according to the town.

The Office of the Mayor and the Prospect Car Owners’ Association organizes the event.

Also new this year will be several World War II military vehicles, which will be parked in the field next to the Prospect Public Library, he said. Leo Tomaiolo is bringing his M5 Stuart Tank, a M20 Armored Car and a M3 Halftrack from Massachusetts for display.

There will be a vintage city bus that ran from Wolcott to Waterbury in the ’50s and ’60s on display as well.

About 30 trophies will be given out during the event.

People park all the way down at the banks on Route 69 and walk up to the Green, Chatfield said. The parking lots fill up at St. Anthony’s Church and Long River Middle and Algonquin schools, he said.

The entrance gate is situated by the Resident State Trooper’s Office, and people will perch on a nearby stone wall to watch the cars arrive, the mayor said.

A disc jockey will play music, and two live bands will perform — The Sharades and The Rockin’ Heartbeats. The Prospect Dairy Bar and Restaurant, The Big Dipper, Bellavita Pizza Restaurant, Anna’s Prospect Pizza, Senor Pancho’s of Prospect and Spill the Beans will sell food.