It was the coolest — and hottest selling — soda in Manteca 40 years ago.
The soda? Commemorative long-neck Coca-Cola bottles marking the Fourth of July in Manteca.
They were sold between 1985 and 1988 by the Manteca Fourth of July Committee to raise the $5,000 to $8,000 needed to stage the aerial fireworks display.
One side of the 10-ounce glass bottle had the same label each year with the date and year, a notation it was for the Manteca, California, Fourth of July celebration along with a red, white and blue illustration of a bald eagle.
The other side in the initial year of 1985 was imprinted with the City of Manteca’s Family City logo.
In the subsequent three years, there was rendering of the Statue of Liberty, then the fife and drum with the flag bearer, and finally the liberty bell.
While it has been difficult to find what they sold for originally, collectors on e-Bay believe one empty bottle is worth $12 while a pair of unopened bottles were listed for $45.
The remaining bottles were “sold” n 1995 at a Fourth of July at Christmas fund raiser in the committee conducted in early December of 1994.
The price for a 4-pack of bottles from each year was $20.
The last fundraiser of significance was the Mantecaopoly game.
The committee, due to the need to raise money year round and then spend the holiday staging a semi-festival along with fireworks, finally disbanded.
That meant the Fourth of July parade was history for two or three years.
The fireworks display was picked up by the Manteca Chamber of Chamber for a number of years before the fundraising effort became a struggle for them as well.
For years, the display was conducted over the Spreckels Sugar property just east of Manteca High were the festivities were held.
They had to moved when the Curran Grove neighborhood was built on the southeast corner of Powers and Yosemite avenues effectively eliminating much of the buffer zone for embers after the almond orchard was converted to 177 homes.
That led to the ill-fated move to East Union High where the aerial display spooked a herd of dairy goats located just north of Lathrop Road, getting the chamber into litigation.
A pause in the fireworks was resolved when the city picked up the tab using “bonus bucks” paid by developers and part of the proceeds from the Manteca Police Officers Association fireworks booth after Manteca became the first city in the county to allow the sale of safe and sane fireworks,
The city chose to fire off the fireworks at the wastewater treatment plant.
That is why makes the Big League Dreams sports complex and nearby area prime places to watch the Fourth of July fireworks this Friday at 9:30 p.m.
The city’s general fund now covers the fireworks that can cost upwards of $40,000.
As for the parade, back in the mid-1990s then Councilman Jay Smart, disappointed it had been dropped, got together a ragtag band of other citizens who dressed in red white and blue, decked out bicycles the same, and grabbed every flag they could to walk down sidewalks along Main Street.
Smart also drove his restored World War Army Jeep with a flag in back up and down Main Street for several hours that Independence Day.
The next year, the Sunrise Kiwanis took over the parade and have been conducting it ever since.
The parade this year will take place on Yosemite Avenue through downtown Manteca due to road construction on North Main Street.
The parade starts at 10 a.m. on Friday.
BLD celebration
YupUp has teamed with the City of Manteca to stage what the firm describes as “Disneyland meets hometown charm” to celebrate Independence Day from 3 to 9 p.m. at the Big League Dreams sports complex.
The rewards app concern on their yupup.com website as of Monday was still offering advance tickets at $45 apiece. The price the day of the event, providing there are tickets available, is $50.
Those attending the event can stay for the best place to see the City of Manteca’s aerial fireworks display that starts at 9:30 p.m. and is launched from a location just north of the BLD complex.
Admission to the event gives you access to all six themed entertainment zones.
Not included in the general admission are pony rides, access to gaming trucks, Gellyball, and the photo booth
There will also be food trucks as well as a food and beer garden.
There will be a lawn hangout zone. People are encouraged to bring lawn chairs or blankets and kick back to listen to music.
There will be in-and-out access allowed throughout the day with your wrist band and valid admission ticket.
To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com
