Tulip Festival kicks off with traditional street scrubbing
The 76th Annual Tulip Festival has officially kicked off in Albany's Washington Park with the traditional street scrubbing. Originating in 1949, when Mayor Erastus Corning II received a gift of 100,000 tulip bulbs from the city of Amsterdam, the festival has since blossomed into one of the region's most cherished events, drawing crowds from near and far to revel in the beauty of nature's awakening.
Every year the Albany Tulip Festival kicks off with a tradition steeped in symbolism and history: the annual street scrubbing. Descending from the Dutch custom of cleansing the streets prior to the monarch's visit, this ritual has become an enduring emblem of Albany's connection to its Dutch roots. Each year, volunteers don traditional Dutch attire as they take to the streets with wooden brushes and buckets of water, meticulously scrubbing away the remnants of winter and preparing the city for the festivities to come.
With the streets scrubbed clean and the scent of tulips perfuming the air, the stage is set for a weekend filled with festivities. From live music performances and artisanal vendors to the crowning of the Tulip Queen and her court and Mother of the Year, the Albany Tulip Festival promises something for everyone to enjoy. As the city awakens from its winter slumber, there's no better way to embrace the arrival of spring than by immersing oneself in the beauty and joy of this beloved tradition.
