Going for 90
INSIDE
Rodeo in Lewiston — it’s a tradition Lewiston Roundup was founded in 1935 4
Crowd is coming to Lewiston Indications point to jams during Roundup . . . . . . . . 6
Superstar bull rider’s career ended at Lewiston J.B. Mauney is now coaching a PBR team 8
Ode to the Roundup Rodeo poem 9
Schnabel wins mustache honor as prize whiskergrower in contest at Roundup fun center Facial hair-growing contest draws participants 10
Queen of 1950 Roundup relishes her rodeo days Molly Staley Benscoter says her reign ‘was a dream’ . . 11
Lewiston Roundup queens From 1935-2024. .
The sun shines on Jackson Sundown Nez Perce warrior and rodeo champ is inducted into Idaho Hall of Fame
12
16
Lewiston fair now outlawed, dates given to Yakima fair This move ultimately led to the establishment of the Lewiston Roundup Association in 1935 19
Historic Roundup Park nears end of trail Lewiston Roundup Park’s final rodeo was in 1981 . . . 20
Hollywood star will reign over Roundup Movie star and 1944 queen Julie Gibson returns 22 PREMIUM EDITION STAFF
Publisher
NATHAN ALFORD / alford@lmtribune.com
Interim managing editor
MATT BANEY / mbaney@lmtribune.com City editor
JENNIFER LADWIG / jladwig@lmtribune.com
Design editor
DALLAS MARSHALL / dmarshall@lmtribune.com Photo editor
AUGUST FRANK / afrank@lmtribune.com
Roundup has been a big darn deal — and remains so today
Anyone who has attended the Lewiston Roundup can attest to the event’s strong ties to history and tradition. When the 90th Roundup takes place next week, it probably won’t be all that different than the rst one in 1935.
One example: Check out the photos on Pages 12 and 13 of the 86 young women who have served as Roundup queen over the decades. The style of those queens really hasn’t changed much in all that time.
This section is a celebration of the Roundup’s history. You’ll nd stories written within the last week or so by current sta members, as well as some interesting vintage clippings from the Lewiston Tribune archives.
The initial Roundup in ’35 was a sensation. The Tribune reported there being 4,500 spectators on the rst day, 8,000 on the second day and 11,000 on the third day. Idaho’s governor, C. Ben Ross, made an appearance and Lewiston businesses closed early so their employees could attend the rodeo.
internet — and for that matter, there was no NAIA World Series, no Lewiston’s Hot August Nights, no demolition derby, no casino. The Roundup was the event.
These days, the Roundup can’t claim to be the undisputed champion of events in our region, but there’s no question it remains a big darn deal.
That was illustrated last year when J.B. Mauney, perhaps the biggest superstar in bull riding today, came to the Lewiston Roundup. Unfortunately, it was at the 89th Roundup that Mauney’s career came to an end, with the stoic cowboy breaking his neck a er getting ung from a bull named Arctic Assassin. The outside world usually doesn’t pay much attention to Lewiston, but it did when Mauney su ered that mishap. Our coverage of Mauney’s injury was our best-read story of 2023 at our website, lmtribune.com, because people from all around the country were clicking on it.
The Tribune’s Kerri Sandaine caught up with Mauney recently for an update on his life in retirement. (Read that on Page 8).
Molly Staley Benscoter, the Roundup queen in 1950, remembers the rodeo back then being the event of the year and “such a fuss.” (Read more about Molly in Emily Pearce’s feature on Page 11.)
During the early days of the Roundup, there were far fewer distractions for potential spectators. There was no TV, no
Hopefully the most memorable thing about the 90th Roundup won’t be another injury. But whatever ends up being the biggest headline this year, I’m sure Lewiston will be paying close attention.
Baney is the interim managing editor of The Lewiston Tribune and Moscow-Pullman Daily News. He may be contacted at mbaney@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2251.
SIT DOWN AND ENJOY THE SHOW
ON THE COVER
COMMENTARY
Baney
Barry Kough/Lewiston Tribune file
Rodeo clown Skip Beeler performs for students at McSorley Elementary School in Lewiston in 1984.
The iconic Lewiston Roundup logo is silhouetted against the sun at the Roundup grounds in this file photo taken by the Tribune’s August Frank in 2022.
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Flag bearers ride around near the main arena during the 2022 Lewiston
the first night of competition. Rodeo competitions in Lewiston date back to 1890 — the same year Idaho became a state.
Rodeo in Lewiston — it’s a tradition
The town’s first cowboy competition was in 1890; the Lewiston Roundup as it’s now known was founded in 1935
By KAYLEE BREWSTER LEWISTON TRIBUNE
Rodeos in Lewiston are as old as Idaho history. Lewiston was established in 1861, and Idaho joined the U.S. as the 43rd state in 1890 — the same year the rst cowboy competition took place in Lewiston. That event only had bronco riding on June 19, 1890: the rst place prize was a $400 saddle, second place was $50 and third place $10. Arthur Cantrell from the Camas Prairie claimed the winning saddle.
The competition grew in popularity, creating the Lewiston Clarkston Interstate Fair and Racing Association in 1899. The event grew in popularity as did the population of Lewiston, which was around 10,000. Many attended the event along with others from the region.
In 1921, the Lewiston Clarkston Fair Association began coordinating with Pendleton to start an association of rodeo shows in the Northwest. The goal was to
Continued on Page 5
Balanced atop a thundering horse, Roz Beaton carries the American flag around the arena to open a performance of the Lewiston Roundup in 2019. The 90th annual Lewiston Roundup is Sept. 4-7.
Barry Kough/ Lewiston Tribune file
August Frank/Lewiston Tribune file
Roundup ahead of
A cowboy and bronc become airborne and untethered during a Lewiston Roundup performance.
Lewiston Tribune le
Continued from Page 4
combine e orts and expenses and avoid con icting dates and interests for the group that would eventually become the Big Four Rodeo Association. That group, formally established in 1948, includes Lewiston, Walla Walla, Ellensburg and Pendleton. The fair association met in 1935 to go over the details of the rodeo in the fall, including a membership of $100 to help pay for it. MB Mickelson made the motion to form a rodeo association in 1935, which was seconded by G.R. Beckman. This was also where the rodeo association was formed and later named
the Lewiston Roundup Association by a motion from T.J. Smith, which was seconded by C.A. Lee. The rst rodeo was then held Sept. 26-28, according to information provided by Lewiston Roundup historians.
Since then, the Lewiston Roundup has been held every year, except in 1942 because of the U.S. entering World War II and in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Roundup was held at the facility in North Lewiston until that venue was threatened by slack water a er the dams were built on the Snake River. The event moved to Tammany in 1982 and has been there ever since.
Lewiston Roundup Board of
> Roundup timeline
1912: Exposition is constructed in North Lewiston for exhibits of agriculture and horticulture; also when professional riders began coming to Lewiston and bucking rules were printed.
1921: Lewiston Clarkston Fair Association and the Pendleton show begin work that eventually became the Big Four Rodeo Association.
1935: Rodeo association formed at a Chamber of Commerce meeting and the name of the Lewiston Roundup Association was decided. Tom Hogan wins the steer wrestling, Harry Knights takes first in saddle bronc riding and Lawrence Conley wins the tie-down roping at the first Lewiston Roundup.
1937: Doug Bruce wins the first recorded bareback bronc riding event at the Lewiston Roundup.
1939: Hany Hart is the first recorded winner in the all-around category at the Lewiston Roundup and Paul Carney wins the bull riding’s first recorded event.
1942: Lewiston Roundup canceled because of World War II.
1943: First use of “She’s Wild!” on the program for the Roundup.
1944: “She’s Wild” is trademarked for the Lewiston Roundup.
1948: The Big Four Rodeo Association was formed with Lewiston, Pendleton, Ellensburg and Walla Walla. Ellensburg withdrew from the association in 2011.
1978: Tom Kleeniken and Tommy Kleeniken win the first recorded team roping event.
1981: WPRA barrel racing joins the Lewiston Roundup, with Carol Stewart winning the first recorded event.
1982: Lewiston Roundup moves to Tammany from North Lewiston.
2004: The first recorded steer-roping event joins the Lewiston Roundup, with Cody Ohl taking the prize.
2019: WPRA breakaway roping becomes another event at the Lewiston Roundup with Shelby McDonald taking first place.
Directors purchased 80 acres from Orville Konen to build the facilities at Tammany. Bill Skelton was president of the board, Don Bott was architect, and facilities committee chairperson Bill McCann Jr. oversaw the excavation of the land and construction of the buildings. That year the rodeo theme was “All New in ’82.” The Lewiston Board of Directors also chose to make the facility have indoor and outdoor arenas, an RV park, horse barn and Ketch Pen event space, and to be available all year for equestrian and motorized events, according to the Lewiston Roundup website.
Brewster may be contacted at kbrewster@ lmtribune.com or at (208) 848-2297.
2020: Lewiston Roundup canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
2024: The 90th annual Lewiston Roundup is planned for Sept. 4-7.
– Lewiston Roundup website
> Lewiston Roundup records
Total payout: $172,709 in 2023
Steer wrestling: 3.2 seconds J.D. Struxnuess in 2023.
Barrel racing: 16.92 seconds, Amanda Welsh in 2021.
Bull riding: 94 points, Jason McClain in 2002.
Breakaway roping: 2.0 seconds, Kelsie Domer in 2023.
– Lewiston Roundup website
Crowd is coming to Lewiston
Indications point to unusual jams during Lewiston Roundup
This story was originally published in the Tribune on Sept. 25, 1935.
LEWISTON MORNING TRIBUNE
“Lewiston’s rst annual roundup, o ering $2,500 in prizes to contestants, is scheduled to open tomorrow, and seldom in the history of the city has such intense interest been aroused over an event of this nature,” said President Arthur L. Grover of the Lewiston Roundup Association, Inc., last night. “Riders from all parts of the west who are on their way to Madison Square garden and other eastern shows, horse tamers who have participated in leading shows of east and west, have entered the Lewiston event and they universally declare that the show arrangement and the stock already on hand matches anything assembled in the west this year. We have been assured that crowds will attend from the tributary territory for hundreds of miles and preparations are being made to give them a show worth while.”
CROWDS DUE TODAY
Lewiston yesterday prepared to extend her hospitable arms in greeting to the thousands who will pour into the city tomorrow at the opening of the roundup. Thursday has been designated as “Lewiston day.” Friday has been set aside as “Governor’s day,” when Governor C. Ben Ross, Idaho’s cowboy chief executive, will be the guest of honor. Schools will be closed Friday a ernoon. The majority of Lewiston business hours will be closed Thursday and Friday a ernoons between 1 and 4:30 p.m. to give employees an opportunity to attend. Today marks the arrival of the famed string of Brahma bulls, the bucking bu alo, “Miss Sharkey,” and the 30 bucking horses of the
up, the Ellensburg show
Rose Wahl string. These animals were featured at the Pendleton roundup, the Ellensburg show and later at the great Medford fair, where they were watched by crowds numbering more than 200,000. They are coming direct from Medford to Lewiston enroute east where they have been signed as stellar attractions.
FAMED
CLOWN IS COMING
Homer Holcomb, acclaimed as the world champion roundup clown, whose home is at Dubois, Wyo., is likewise scheduled to arrive today with his notorious mule, “Orphan Annie.”
Riders whose names are known through the west continued to reach the city with their roping horses and other mounts yesterday. Recreation park was a hive of activity.
Half a thousand spectators jammed their way around the rails at the arena yesterday a ernoon to watch a thrilling preliminary show staged during the weeding-out process of bucking horses. Twenty wild ones of the Tim Bernard string from the wilds of the Okanogan country in Washington were put through the chutes and it was a spectacle that brought red corpuscles through the veins of the most sophisticated rodeo followers.
RIDERS ARE DUMPED
Only one rider was able to wiggle his way through the tests. Every other man who attempted to stay on the hurricane back of one of those meanies bit the dust. Two were disquali ed for pulling leather and every horse in the string was chosen to enter the lists when the show opens tomorrow.
This is the front page of the Lewiston Morning Tribune on Sept. 26, 1935, which was the opening day of the first official Lewiston Roundup.
Ted Baker, who attempted to handle one of the tough
ones of the string, was taken to White’s hospital su ering with two cracked ribs on the right side and an injured arm. He was thrown violently and then tramped by his sun shing mount when his foot was caught in the stirrup. But
the show went on. He was carried behind the wing fence protecting riders awaiting their mounts and the bucking tests continued.
Five professional pickup riders were on the job to rescue buckaroos and their spirited work
brought cheers from the crowd. They will be in constant service during the roundup.
The tryouts will continue this a ernoon and by nightfall the stage will be set for a spectacle that promises thrills for thousands.
YOUNG PATRIOT
LEFT: A young flag bearer rides around the arena at the Roundup in years past. Lewiston Tribune file
GOING FOR IT
RIGHT: Cliff Armstrong, of Bloomington, Calif., competes in steer wrestling at the Lewiston Roundup in 1981. Barry Kough/ Lewiston Tribune file
August Frank/Lewiston Tribune file
Bareback riders prepare for their rides at the Lewiston Roundup in 2021.
ONE YEAR AGO ...
... superstar bull rider’s career ended at Lewiston
J.B. Mauney is now coaching a Professional Bull Riders team and ‘still messing with bulls every day’ — including the bull that ended his career
By KERRI SANDAINE LEWISTON TRIBUNE
Ayear ago, superstar bull rider
J.B. Mauney crawled on the back of Arctic Assassin at the Lewiston Roundup and waited for the gate to open. In the blink of an eye, the Texas cowboy somersaulted high o the bull’s back and landed on his head as the crowd gasped. It would prove to be the last professional
ride of his storied career.
Determined to walk on his own, the legendary bull rider staggered out of the arena with the help of bull ghters. “I just broke my f---ing neck,” Mauney said as he waited for medics and an ambulance ride to St. Joseph Regional Medical Center.
When recently contacted by The Lewiston Tribune for an update, Mauney said he’s “good to go,” and “still messing with bulls every day.”
Now 37, Mauney is the head coach of the Oklahoma Wildcatters in the Professional Bull Riders Team Series, a role he thoroughly enjoys.
“I won’t be back at the Roundup this year,” Mauney told the
Tribune. “I’m coaching a PBR team now, and getting the same rush when they stay on a bull as I did when I was riding.”
In other interviews, Mauney says coaching is the most fun he’s had and “can still walk straight when it’s over.”
Mauney lives in Stephensville, Texas, with his wife and young son. When he’s not coaching younger riders, he’s mending fences, working with bulls, and keeping busy with a never-ending list of chores on bucking chutes and pens that are now known as Bucktown.
In addition to his family, the bull that ended his career now lives on
Mauney’s XV Ranch, which is about 90 minutes southwest of Fort Worth.
“Yeah, he retired me,” the bull rider says, “and now he gets to retire with me. We’re both doing ne.”
Mauney said he easily could have been paralyzed or dead a er Arctic Assassin launched him into the air at the Roundup. He was already dealing with injuries when he signed up for what would become his nal professional ride.
In past interviews, Mauney described the moment he knew his neck was broken. “It felt like somebody stuck a hot knife right in the back of my neck,” he told another reporter.
Continued on Page 9
August Frank/Lewiston Tribune file
J.B. Mauney is thrown from his bull, Arctic Assassin, in the Xtreme Bulls competition at the Lewiston Roundup in 2023. Mauney sustained a neck injury that required surgery, and prompted him to announce his retirement from bull riding.
Mauney
Ode to the Roundup
This poem was originally published in the Tribune on Aug. 30, 1935.
You all know, as I do, that times have been tough; That for four or ve years we’ve had more than enough Of scrimping and saving with bellies gone slack And wond’ring if ever good times would come back.
There’s a right true old saying “all things must end,” So again we see folks with some shekels to spend, With the old belly wrinkles of the past And all signs predicting good times that will last.
You may check back on history as far as you please And you’ll nd many records of times quite like these, And always those hard-headed people of yore. Celebrated to show that the trouble was o’er.
Now modern man — you can say what you may — Still clings to that proper old custom today; When the battle is won and the vict’ry complete In some way or other he’ll throw out his feet.
So alone in September, when harvest is done, The folks in this valley are bound to have fun When they stage the big Round-up-Wild West Rodeo — With the sky as the limit to make a grand show.
Already folks feel it! Just walk down the street And check on the whiskers — the snap in men’s feet — With mustaches garnishing ten-gallon hats And buckskin vests hugging the business men’s slats.
Things have gone beyond fooling or being a joke; It will be a good party or this town go broke; For when man allows whiskers to cover his face He is right down in earnest and going some place.
This interest is catching — like measles, or pip — I can tell by the down on any own upper lip — And visiting strangers, when told of the show, Throw their razors away and start shooting “Let’s go!”
So here’s to the whiskers, the hats and the chaps, And the good things prosperity’s thrown in our laps; And we’ll burst our cinches without a regret To make this a round-up none will forget.
— W.H. Stober, Lewiston
Continued from Page 8
A er being released from St. Joe’s last September, he went home to recuperate and announced his retirement to the world. Rodeo fans across the globe responded with heartfelt gratitude for the unparalleled skills he had demonstrated at rodeos, such as the Lewiston Roundup, for more than two decades.
Mauney has always been known for his toughness and work ethic. He’s won world titles, racked up more than $7.4 million in prize money and was inducted into the Bull Riding Hall of Fame in May.
When he showed up to compete in Lewiston last year, he was wearing a black shirt adorned with sponsorships and smoking a Marlboro. He nonchalantly walked under the bleachers to greet the other bull riders and check in. The crowd instantly recognized him.
“That’s J.B. Mauney,” a Lewiston rodeo fan said in awe. “He’s the most famous bull rider in the world.”
A er his short but life-changing ride, Mauney quickly “burned down” a cigarette while wearing a neck brace at a picnic table as he waited for the ambulance. He was shaky, but otherwise calm.
“It was always going to happen like this,” Mauney later told a reporter. “I knew that. Something was going to have to happen where they told me I couldn’t ride anymore.”
With all of the changes over the past year, Mauney wants to assure Roundup fans he’s “doing good, and just playing the cards I got dealt.” He appreciates everyone’s support, including the Roundup directors and the medical team at St. Joe’s.
One thing is for sure: He’ll never forget Lewiston, Idaho.
Sandaine can be reached at kerris@lmtribune.com.
Keith Church, long time Hahn Supply Manager
Schnabel wins mustache honor as prize whiskergrower in contest at Roundup fun center
This story was originally published in the Tribune on Sept. 27, 1935.
LEWISTON MORNING TRIBUNE
Judged as having the “most typical and representative facial adornment of the old days,” Phil Schnabel, sponsored by the C.O.D. laundry, was awarded first prize last night at the mustache contest held at “The Bunkhouse.” He was presented with a 10-gallon hat by Claus J. Breier Jr.
“My wife made me promise that if I won the prize I would have to give it to her,” Schnabel told the crowd after he was presented with the prize, “because she suffered most of the hardship while I was growing my beard.”
In cave man attire
Schnabel appeared at the contest dressed as a cave man. With a leopard skin thrown over his shoulders, and two calf skins around his waist, his hair flowing wildly, and a club in his hand, he nearly frightened the judges.
Twenty-three contestants marched to the center of the dance floor on the third floor of “The Bunkhouse,” being announced as they passed the orchestra stand by Walt Allen, orchestra leader. The judging committee, composed of five women, picked five winners out of the group.
C.J. Hopkins, Potlatch Forests, Inc., was awarded second place; Oscar Gustafson, Lewiston fire department, third; Maj. E.D. Potvin,
unsponsored, fourth, and Arnold Lyon, unsponsored, fifth. In the parade of contestants were full beards, tricky mustaches, long, fancy sideburns, goatees, and many other clever adornments.
Committee of women
Mrs. S.C. Skillern was chairman of the judging committee. Other members were Mrs. E.V. Lorenz, Mrs. A.L. Alford, Mrs. Otto Leuschel and Mrs. J.P. Shaughnessy.
“The Bunkhouse,” a three-floor transformation of the Elks club, was a whirl of activity last night. Hundreds, many of whom were dressed in roundup costumes, made “The Bunkhouse” suggest gay times of the early cow days.
Upon entering “The Bunkhouse,” which officially opened at 7 o’clock last night, patrons were required to change their money into “Bunkhouse” currency, scrip approved by the roundup committee. Nothing could be purchased for regular cash. “Bunkhouse” currency was the only acceptable medium of exchange.
Bedlam at games
On the main floor, games of many descriptions, occupied the attention of hundreds on the floor. Booth operators were shouting their pleas for “takers,” and “takers” were shouting their satisfaction or dissatisfaction with their luck. The floor was a beehive of noise and excitement.
Refreshments were served in the basement and dancing was the order on the third floor. Decorations in the large dance room were in keeping with the roundup theme, silhouettes of bucking horses and riders outlined against an orange background decorating the walls. The orchestra shell, housing an augmented 9-piece orchestra under the direction of Walt Allen, was decorated in the same manner. Homer Hamblin is in charge of the dance hoard. The life-size silhouettes of the horses were constructed by Tom Stedman and Roy Smith, designers of the attractive decorations. Jitney dances will be held in “The Bunkhouse” again tonight and Saturday night.
Queen of 1950 Roundup relishes her rodeo days
Molly Staley Benscoter says her reign ‘was a dream’; her princesses are also still alive
By EMILY PEARCE MOSCOW-PULLMAN DAILY NEWS
PULLMAN — The Lewiston Roundup has put on 90 years of rodeos, and its longestsurviving royalty court will be celebrating the anniversary.
Organizers say the entire 1950 court is alive, placing them in their 90s. Queen Molly Staley Benscoter is from and still lives in Pullman, and Princess Dorothy Parkins Miller resides in Moscow. Princess Dorene Dixon Marshall moved to Virginia to be closer to family.
Molly remembers her rodeo days fondly, saying it was one of the most exciting times of her life.
“It was a dream,” she said recently at her home in Pullman. “I’ve always liked animals and horses. It was a dream come true.”
> Inside All of the Lewiston Roundup queens, past and present / Pages 12-13
native is from
Born in Colfax in 1932, the Palouse native is from one of the oldest families in Pullman. Molly said her relatives came in 1874 to farm and raise cattle.
She and her husband, John Scott “Jack” Benscoter, worked for years to restore her great-grandparents’ 1889 family home. The house is now the Staley Museum, located 2 miles south of Pullman, containing many historical items and near-perfect furnishings almost identical to what it looked like more than a century ago.
Molly said she and Jack made a living by raising and showing purebred Hereford cattle.
“They’re my favorite breed,” she said. “But you don’t even see them anymore; it’s just Angus all the time.”
She also raised and broke American Quarter Horses.
Molly said one of her favorite steeds was named “Candy.”
Rodeos were something different back then, Molly said. She joked that everyone made “such a fuss” over the event because it was the occasion of the year.
Molly would o en go with her family to the Lewiston Roundup, and also nearby rodeos like the Grangeville Border Days, Chief Joseph Days, Pendleton Roundup and the East Washington Fair.
Her favorite part about them were the parades because the horses “liked showing o .” Molly was able to ride oats in later years when
Powers/Moscow-Pullman
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: Molly Staley Benscoter, the 1950 Roundup queen, holds a book filled with clippings and other memories from her time as royalty, including photos with her horse, Candy. Benscoter lives at her home in Pullman. Fellow 1950 Roundup court members Dorothy Parkins Miller, left, and Benscoter meet up at a court event in 2017. Benscoter talks about clippings and other memories saved in a scrapbook.
she said the Lewiston Roundup brought back past royalty members.
Molly had no idea she would be crowned queen at the 1950 rodeo. She said it was a complete shock in a wonderful way.
She was grateful because it meant becoming close friends with Parkins Miller and Dixon Marshall. Molly said they o en traveled together a er
being named royalty, which made it easy to get to know each other well.
The three tried staying in touch, but Molly said they grew apart as they got older. They still think admirably of each other, she added.
Molly and Jack raised their two children, Terri and David Benscoter, in Pullman. Before starting a family, the two brie y lived in Montana.
Jack died in 2017. Molly has ve grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
While they no longer ranch, Molly said the family farm in Pullman still grows Palouse products every year, like wheat, barley, canola, garbanzo beans and more.
Pearce can be reached at epearce@dnews.com.
Liesbeth
Daily News
Lewiston Roundup queens 1935-2024
There have been 86 young women who have served as queen of the Lewiston Roundup. Why not 90? There were two years when the Roundup was canceled (1942,
because of World War II, and 2020, because of the COVID-19 pandemic), one year when there were only princesses (1936) and one year with no royalty at all (1937).
Tabitha Neville
Lexi Way
Niah Griffin
Rachael Stevens
Nicole Poxleitner
Brenna Southwick
Jayde Wilson
Kimberly Lawrence 2013
Darryl Kerby
Kirstin Parvin
Allison Mushlitz
Pete Caster/Lewiston Tribune file
Austin Johnson/Lewiston Tribune file
In this photo taken with a drone, flag carriers circle the arena during the Lewiston Roundup in 2022.
The sun shines on Jackson Sundown
Nez Perce warrior and rodeo champ is inducted into Idaho Hall of Fame
This story was originally published in the Lewiston Tribune on July 19, 2014.
By MARY STONE LEWISTON TRIBUNE
Before Nez Perce rodeo legend Jackson Sundown famously won the saddle bronc world championship at the Pendleton Roundup in 1916, event officials made him ride twice more.
Speaking at Sundown’s induction into the Idaho Hall of Fame on Friday evening, Allen Pinkham Sr. shared a well-known description of the scene.
“The crowd went wild and threatened to take down the grandstands board by board if Sundown wasn’t awarded the title he had so clearly won,” Pinkham said during remarks to a packed house at the Clearwater River Casino and Lodge.
Pinkham’s son, Josiah Blackeagle Pinkham, brought his two sons, 11 and 9 years old, to the event. Afterward they looked at items including Sundown’s saddle, reins and hat that are on display as part of the casino’s Cultural Walk exhibit.
“To us, Jackson Sundown’s contribution was tied less to his feats in the roundup and rodeo arena and more to his influence as it was understood from the Nez Perce War (of 1877),” Josiah Pinkham said. “(The roundup arena) put him on the world stage, but for us, we always are reminded of the struggle for survival.”
According to a biography provided by the Nez Perce Tribe, Sundown was 14 during the Nez Perce War of 1877. He escaped to Canada, where he made his way to Sitting Bull’s camp and lived in hiding.
He eventually returned to the U.S. — to the Flathead Reservation in Montana — before coming to Idaho. There he married Cecelia Wapsheli and settled near Jacques Spur in 1910.
Nez Perce Tribal Executive Committee Chairperson Silas Whitman grew up hearing stories about Sundown from his uncles. They told him
Continued on Page 17
Courtesy Nakia Williamson
Jackson Sundown, a Nez Perce man famous for his 1916 saddle bronc win at the Pendleton Roundup, joined the ranks of many other famous cowboys in the Hall of Fame during a 2014 ceremony in Twin Falls.
Continued from Page 16
about how his great-grandfather broke horses with Sundown, who was renowned for his horsemanship.
“They told of a man of great pride and dignity,” Whitman said. “He was not a demonstrative person except in the rodeo arena.”
Sundown, who won the bronc championship at the age of 53 while competing against riders half his age, was a survivor, Whitman said, whose memory is honored as a professional athlete and a veteran.
“He was always willing to extend his hand,” he said, noting Sundown’s ability “to survive in the very society that once tried to eliminate him.”
Hall of Fame Honorary Director Louie Attebery said he, too, grew up hearing stories about Sundown. His mother and her siblings, whose family moved to Idaho in 1916, were fascinated by the world champion rider.
A retired College of Idaho English Department chairperson, Attebery said his goal when he joined the Hall of Fame board was to take
care of two omissions in membership: College of Idaho founder and longtime President William Judson Boone, who will be inducted in October, and Sundown.
The Idaho Hall of Fame, based in Meridian, began as a tribute to baseball legend Harmon Killebrew and now includes more than 150 individuals, businesses and organizations.
Sundown is the second Nez Perce tribal member to be included in the hall of fame. Chief Joseph, Sundown’s uncle, was among the inaugural group of inductees in 1995.
During Friday’s ceremony, Hall of Fame President Dallas Cox presented Whitman with two plaques — one commemorating Sundown’s induction, the other Chief Joseph’s.
When Chief Joseph was inducted, Cox said, the Nez Perce Tribe was not represented and the plaque had remained at the Hall of Fame ever since.
Presenting the plaque to the tribe along with Sundown’s was “an awesome opportunity,” she said, to right that situation.
Jackson Sundown, circa 1916.
Lewiston Tribune file
cowboy
Lewiston fair now outlawed, with dates given to Yakima fair
This story was originally published Feb. 5, 1925. This move ultimately led to the establishment of the Lewiston Roundup Association in 1935.
LEWISTON MORNING TRIBUNE
The Lewiston fair is now thoroughly outlawed and must either stand alone or must work with the small central Idaho fairs to organize a circuit that will be able to attract amusement people and race horses in sufficient numbers to stage a creditable program. The blow to the Lewiston fair was administered at Hoquiam, Wash., Tuesday when the North Pacific Fair association set dates for the 1925 expositions and the Washington state fair was advanced one week to follow the Spokane Interstate Fair. The Spokane fair will open on Sept. 7, Labor Day, and the Yakima fair will open the Monday following.
The Lewiston-Clarkston fair was one of the organizers of the North Pacific Fair association but its membership was dropped during the years of the Northwest livestock show. Membership was renewed in 1923 for a membership fee of $40 and opportunity was offered to continue this membership and to have reserved the dates following the Spokane fair. This was generally recognized as an advantage because of the attractions and race horses that could be secured from the Spokane fair, but last year the fair management declined to continue the membership to the North Pacific association and this year the Lewiston dates will be absorbed by advancing the dates of the Yakima fair.
For the past several years, the LewistonClarkston fair has been conducted under the auspices of the Northwest Livestock Show because of the protection of the incorporation of the latter organization. It has been found, however, the charter of then Northwest Livestock show has been canceled because of failure to secure the annual state license and the fair organization now finds itself without a parent, without dates and with prospect of being kicked out of its home in east Lewiston where the fair grounds will be needed for the development of the milling industry.
The fair closed the 1924 season with a balance of more than $1,200 in the bank. The first installment of the county appropriation will soon be available and business men interested in the future of the annual exposition are beginning to formulate plans to create a new organization, secure the necessary incorporation and put the machinery to work to establish a regional circuit by which good attractions, good race horses and good entertainment can be brought in for the neighboring eastern Washington and central Idaho circuit. It is generally realized that action must be taken by the business interests at once if Lewiston is to have a creditable fair this year and with the dates taken the old incorporation in the discard and the necessity of regional organization to get horses and amusements, the view is advanced that no time should be lost in getting the business interests together to organize plans for the annual exposition.
TIME FOR TAKEOFF
Tribune file photo
A cowboy goes flying during the saddle bronc competition at a past Lewiston Roundup.
Historic Roundup Park nears end of trail
This story was originally published in the Tribune on Sept. 6, 1972. Lewiston Roundup Park’s final rodeo ended up being in 1981. Since 1982, the Roundup’s home has been in the Tammany area south of Lewiston.
By GEORGE SHREVE TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
The Lewiston Roundup Park has sandwiched a lot of exciting entertainment into its history that began as an idea of a group of businessmen in 1929 and will end in several years when the Port District converts it to an industrial site.
Although it’s known best as the scene of Lewiston’s annual September Roundup, it also was the home of the county fairs for 16 years and served as the city’s baseball and recreation field in the early 1930s.
The Lewiston Roundup Ass’n has begun searching for a new site for an arena that could serve for more
than just a rodeo grounds — one that could be used throughout the year by riding groups, horse clubs and other show-activity functions.
M.L. “Ozzie” Osborn, Roundup Board secretary, said, “We’re considering going in with schools, the fair boards and other organizations for multipurpose sites in Lewiston Orchards, Tammany, eastern Lewiston or other places.”
Much investigation lies ahead before a decision is made and construction begins.
While the new roundup grounds may serve more people for longer periods than the present arena, much sentiment will remain with the North Lewiston site where Cy Tallion’s voice has aimed at rodeo contestants and spectators alike for many years.
The association’s early records and Lewiston Morning Tribune’s editions since the late 1920s tell the history of the grounds.
Plans made
A group of citizens sought to cooperate with Lewiston City Council in August of 1929 to develop a municipal park and fair grounds on the north side of the river.
The plans materialized, and Recreation Park became the home of the Lewiston baseball team in the old Idaho-Washington League. It also served for other recreational activities.
The Lewiston Roundup Ass’n was formed Aug. 3, 1935, for the purpose of sponsoring annual rodeos here.
G.R. Beckman presided over the first meeting at the Bollinger Hotel, and Arthur Grover was elected the first president three days later.
The Roundup Ass’n entered into an agreement with the Northwest Fair & Recreation Co. Aug. 15, 1935, to lease the grounds known as Recreation Park for the first rodeo to be held the following September.
Rodeos weren’t new to north
central Idaho at that time. A number of communities had been having them, and Lewiston had had some small ones at its earlier fair grounds in East Lewiston where Potlatch Forests, Inc., now operates.
But the new rodeo was to be a big one, and the association was to have exclusive option to use Recreation Park from year to year for fall Roundups.
The Roundup Board got full support from the community in promoting the first rodeo. Much volunteer labor was available, and prices were relatively low for materials in that Depression year.
Seating was constructed, then enlarged to accommodate some 6,000 fans during the summer of 1935. A baseball scoreboard was removed and chutes around “substantial poles sunk deep into the ground were erected” shortly before the roundup opened Sept. 26.
Continued on Page 21
Barry Kough/Lewiston Tribune file
Seats right above the bucking bulls coming out of the chutes was a specialty at the Lewiston Roundup Park in North Lewiston from 1935 until the operation moved to Tammany in 1982 to make way for the Port of Lewiston.
Big crowds
The shows drew 4,000 the first day, 8,000 including Idaho Gov. C. Ben Ross the next day and a largely standing crowd of 11,000 the final day.
The first Roundup was a big success, but the Recreation Association was having financial troubles. So the Roundup Board entered into a contract Jan. 14, 1936, to purchase Recreation Park.
Some delay in consummating the purchase agreement developed, and the association entered into a contract with Mr. and Mrs. R.S. Erb on June 14, 1939, to purchase the Roundup grounds for $15,000, to be paid in annual payments of $1,200 at 4 percent interest.
The association had leased parking lots July 8, 1936, from Mr. and Mrs. E.M. Fisher and Mr. and Mrs. Harry F. Herbert with option to buy.
The Roundup Board’s publicity committee headed by A.L. Alford proposed Oct. 5, 1939, that the name of the arena be changed from Recreation Park to Roundup Park. The change was adopted.
While the Roundup was becoming bigger and better, Nez Perce County fairs were being crammed under the old grandstand, James B. McMonigle relayed a few years later.
The Roundup organization built a fair pavilion through the Tri-State Agriculture & Livestock Ass’n in time for an enlarged fair in 1944.
The fairs also grew annually, and the fair building was named the Joe W. Thometz Pavilion after the county agent who spearheaded efforts to improve the fairs and promote livestock shows and sales for many years.
Harry Wall, chairman of the Roundup Association’s building committee, reported July 19, 1944, on plans to expand the park into a community center with facilities for all types of sports, livestock exhibitions and related activities.
The post-war building program didn’t materialize exactly as planned, but the Roundup grounds did receive a new function — as living quarters for a number of Mexican nationals brought to the Lewiston area in the late 1940s to work in the rapidly expanding green pea industry.
Roles regained
Mechanization during the 1950s eliminated the need for the Mexicans in the pea harvests, and the grounds reverted to their rodeo and livestock roles. The two events were held simultaneously.
As both the Roundups and fairs needed more space, conflicts developed between the two governing bodies. The fair board started
looking for a site for grounds for its own activities, and the Roundup Board offered in the spring of 1958 to donate 4½ acres of land east of 18th Street and south of Second Avenue North and to lease additional space to the fair board.
The Roundup organization planned a new fair pavilion for eventual expansion into a 140-foot-square multi-purpose civic center with basketball court, auditorium and other rooms.
But the fair board announced a definite decision Jan. 5, 1959, to move from Roundup Park to a new 25-acre site to be purchased from Ralph Nichols on Burrell Ave., east of Thain Road.
chairman, said the structure would be ready by the fall of 1960. And the fairs have been held annually since then in the huge building with 208-by-156-feet of floor space.
Despite the loss of the fairs, the Roundup Board continued planning into the 1960s for improvements at its North Lewiston grounds. The realization that slack water would reach this city and force the association to move eventually was little deterrent.
Thirty-year-old bucking chutes were replaced with new ones at the arena in 1965 at a cost of $10,000. The seating capacity was increased by 137 to 6,180.
Joe Thometz Pavilion was destroyed by fire Aug. 7, 1965.
Maintenance and some improvements have continued, but the Roundup Board has accepted fate and begun searching for a new site. And its efforts to develop a facility to serve more organizations for a bigger variety of programs during the entire year are broadening its base of support.
If the spirit that enabled the first Roundup Board to organize its facilities and program for the successful openings in 1935 prevails today, the present board can give the Lewis-Clark Empire another enrichment in the entertainment world within a few years. Continued from Page 20
Hugh Parks, Juliaetta, a fair board
The park suffered another blow to its facilities when the
Lewiston Tribune file
From 1935 until 1981, the seats directly above the chutes at the old Lewiston Roundup Park in North Lewiston were a premium spot to see the action.
Hollywood star will reign over Roundup
This story was published in the Aug. 6, 1944, edition of the Lewiston Tribune.
By TISH ERB LEWISTON MORNING TRIBUNE
Since the spectacular opening of the rst Lewiston Roundup in the fall of 1935 when a meanmannered bronc with steam-engine strength made a bee-line out of the saddling chute to the grandstand and catapulted a cowboy from its hurricane deck into a boxseat, exactly as if the performance had been pre-arranged, surprises have marked the succeeding wild west presentations. The 1944 surprise, at least before the three-day show opens Sept. 22, is an announcement yesterday by o cers of the Lewiston Roundup association that a Hollywood movie star will reign as the roundup queen.
Julie Gibson, whose beauty, charm and voice attracted the attention of movie scouts when she was appearing on national radio programs and singing with name bands, has accepted an invitation to attend the Lewiston
Roundup. Paramount Pictures, Inc., the organization that made certain of retaining her for its movie productions by placing her under a seven-year contract, has not only granted her a leave of absence from a role she is playing in a picture now in production in the high Sierras so she may come to Lewiston, but will also cast her in a movie short publicizing the Roundup.
Lewiston has a special claim on Julie Gibson. Lewiston is her hometown, a fact which she mentions with pride at every opportunity. When she was a guest star on an overseas broadcast last fall, she remembered to tell the troops in the South Paci c about Lewiston!
FROM RADIO TO MOVIES
From the age of pinafores through pigtails to pulchritude and personality, Julie Gibson was Camille Sorey, who belonged to the Camp Fire Girls, sang with the Lewiston High School trio, studied dramatics at North Idaho Teachers college and developed into a
Continued on Page 23
Original caption from Aug. 6, 1944.
Julie Gibson, queen of the 1944 Lewiston Roundup to be held Sept. 22-24, was a movie star and will come direct from Hollywood where she is playing the leading role in a picture now in production to be crowned as roundup royalty by Idaho Gov. C.A. Bottolfsen.
Continued from Page 22
talented, ambitious, persevering young girl, who dreamed of a career in the field of entertainment — and the dreams have come true.
It was not long after she left Lewiston to sing with an orchestra that she won an audition contest while singing, at a hotel in Salt Lake City and was placed under contract for her first big-time appearance on a radio program with Joe Penner on a national hookup. It was Penner who gave Camille Sorey the stage name of Julie Gibson.
After the termination of her radio contract, Julie Gibson was a featured vocalist for a season at the famed Bel Air night club in Chicago and later at the Biltmore Bowl in Los Angeles. Then came the opportunity which the continuous improvement of her voice had earned — the movies.
Her rise in the movies has been one of gradual progress. At first she was cast in minor roles while she made an intense study of dramatics under some of Hollywood’s best instructors. During this period, her voice recordings were used as that of stars who had reached the top in leading roles but who lacked the musical training and ability for effective recording.
Within the last few months, Julie Gibson has attained a goal for which all movie stars aim because it proves beyond doubt their photogenic qualities, that of being cast in roles in technicolor pictures. National magazines have used her photograph in their beauty sections and she has appeared as the cover girl on several pieces of sheet music. She began in the movies by playing ingenue parts but with the development of her dramatic talent, she
“I shall be very happy to accept the invitation to attend on the 22nd at which time, I understand, I shall have the extreme pleasure of introducing Julie Gibson, who is at present a well known member of the Hollywood movie colony. I consider it an honor for me to be asked to do this because I am well acquainted with her parents. Mr. and Mrs. G.C. Sorey, residents of your city.”
— IDAHO GOV. C.A. BOTTOLFSEN
, IN A LETTER TO JAMES MCMONIGLE, PRESIDENT OF THE LEWISTON ROUNDUP ASSOCIATION
has been cast in the roles of comedienne and “meanie,” both difficult characterizations.
The latest picture in which Julie had a part, which is now receiving nationwide publicity in the magazines is “Hail, the Conquering Hero Comes.”
GOVERNOR TO CROWN QUEEN
During the spring she was loaned by Paramount as an entertainer at army hospitals
and army air force fields and made a tour through the southern states appearing in a comedy skit with Edgar Bergen and “Charlie McCarthy” and singing for the soldiers.
She played the leading role in a recent picture entitled “Lucky Cowboy.”
The queen of the Lewiston Roundup will be crowned by the governor of the state of Idaho. In a letter to James McMonigle, president of the Lewiston Roundup association. Gov. C.A. Bottolfsen said:
“The committee representing your association has extended an invitation to me to attend your roundup which they advised me would be held Sept. 22, 23 and 24.
“I shall be very happy to accept the invitation to attend on the 22nd at which time, I understand, I shall have the extreme pleasure of introducing Julie Gibson, who is at present a well known member of the Hollywood movie colony. I consider it an honor for me to be asked to do this because I am well acquainted with her parents. Mr. and Mrs. G.C. Sorey, residents of your city.”
Plans for the 1944 show are well under way. Tophands who have appeared this year in stampedes, roundups and rodeos from Calgary to the Mexican border will finish the season at the Lewiston Roundup, the last wild west show before the national contest at Madison Square Garden in New York. There will be an imposing array of cowboys for the colorful opening arena parade to sweep off their 10-gallon hats and hail the roundup queen!
