SpilyayTymoo
September 21,1979
Page 9
Westward Ho Parade
Round-up recounts history of Indians, pioneers
It was a sight of pageantry on
the day of September 14,1979,
as the famous Westward Ho
parade started its trek through
the dow ntow n streets of
Pendleton. There were Indians,
C ow boys, T ra p p e rs and
Pioneers providing excitement
and beauty to the event that
was viewed by thousands.
The unique feature of the
event is that all floats are not
m o to rized . E very th in g is
drawn by either horses, mules
or oxen. People were afoot or
ho rseb ack . In d ia n s from
throughout the northwest and
Canada added a lot of color
and glamour all decked out
in traditional Indian attire.
There were the young afoot,
the middle-aged horseback and
the old huddled together on
w agons. D ru m b eats and
singing echoed through the
streets while the rhythm of
dancing bells could be^heard in
the distance as from time
to time the War Dance was
(TOP LEFT) A reflection of
the post as shown here, the
covered wagon brought the
pioneers out west in the early
days of the great country.
(TOP RIGHT) Representing
the fur trappers o f the past is a
familiar scene during the
Westward Ho Parade at the
Pendleton Round-up each
year.
(BOTTOM RIGHT) A high
school band from the local area
provided the music as they
marched down the street. There
were several bands represent
ing various schools throughout
the parade.
(BOTTOM LEFT) Laura
“Mag” Sahme made her debut
at the Round-up this year after
a long sum m er touring
M o n ta n a a n d C a n a d a
participating in powwows. She
placed in the small girls
category continually.
presented to the audience that
drew applause and cheers in
appreciation of the perfor
mances.
School bands provided
cadence for the marchers and
added music to the famous
“Westward Ho” parade.
Along with the renowned
“Let ‘er Buck” rodeo, horse
races provided plenty of action
and had the crowd on their feet
cheering their favorite. The
Indian bareback relay provided
plenty of action as teams from
Warm Springs, Pendleton and
Yakima participated. The
Indians men’s race and Indian
Women’s race also provided a
lot ofexcitement along with the
baton and express races.
Rolling Acres of Oregon City
had just too much for the other
riding clubs as they won all
their races.
Warm Springs was well
represented this year claiming
the American Indian Beauty
contest along with winning
their share of horse races.