Congratulations to all of the participants
at the recent Wyoming State Fair Sheep Wagon competition. It was an impressive event, kicked off with a
great chuck wagon breakfast on Sunday morning.
I had the privilege of participating in the wagon judging and can’t say
enough about how warm and welcoming everyone was. The wagon display included a wide variety of
styles including a WW1 era Army Escort wagon, multiple chuck wagons and buggies
as well as fourteen sheep wagons signed up for the competition.
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An early sheep wagon scene taken from Volume One of our Borrowed Time western vehicle book series.
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Vehicles from the late 1800’s through
the early 1900’s were represented with about an equal number of wooden wheeled
and rubber-tired sheep wagons shown. Box
makers we could conclusively determine included Florence and Home on the Range. I was also able to identify running gears
originally built by makers such as Bain, Mitchell, Peter Schuttler, Owensboro,
Studebaker, Winona, John Deere, and Stoughton.
Author, sheep wagon authority, and fellow judge, Tom Lindmier, was
gracious enough to show me a few more wagons in the area. It all made for a full and memorable
trip. Below is a brief look at a few
winners from this year’s Wyoming State Fair Sheep Wagon Competition.
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Classified in the "Restored with Modifications" category, the Valentine Sheep wagon entry captured this segment.
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New for this year, the "Personal Touch" category helped highlight some of the more customized Sheep Wagon entries. The Garber entry received the highest total points in this class.
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John Sullivan and the Sullivan Ranch took home top honors in the “Unrestored Working” sheep wagon classification. His wagon is an original “Home on the Range” brand.
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In the "Unrestored Original" category, Bob Vollman received the most points from the 4 judges. His original Florence bed was mated to a Mitchell running gear.
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The "People's Choice" sheep wagon award went to Richard Kaan from the Fall River Carriage Company.
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Thanks, again, to the event organizer, Steve Shadwick, and all of the great folks
at the Wyoming State Fair. The wagons at
the gathering represented a good cross-section of early manufacturers. Some of the period designs rode on Mountain
Wagon gears with steel skeins (correctly pronounced with a long ‘a’ as in “skains”)
while others were equipped with cast skeins.
Combined with comfortable weather and a super-friendly atmosphere, the
only thing missing for me was the opportunity to stay longer. After two days at the fair, work was calling
and it was time to hit the trail once again.
My trip to the region took me past old stage stations, military forts, sections
of the Bozeman and Oregon Trails, numerous museums, and even a historic buffalo
jump. One thing’s for certain, if you
enjoy America’s western history and early wagons, this annual event – and the
entire area – should be on your bucket list.
To punctuate that a bit, in an upcoming blog we’ll share even more about
several additional wagons located on the Wyoming State Fairgrounds in Douglas.
