On a sunny Friday and Saturday the first rodeo, or stampede, was held here in Merritt in 1934. This was made possible by the efforts of Zack Walker (Pictured below, photo from the Merritt Herald) who was the manager and promoter of the stampede. Walker was originally from Salinas, California where he was raised around cattle and stampedes his entire life. He came to Merritt in 1932 and rented out a ranch at Mamette Lake where he began to raise cattle and horses.
The stampede was a reported success with the Merritt Herald writing that approximately 2000 people packing Voght Park where the stampede was held both on Friday, August 3rd and Saturday, August 4th with people coming as far as Victoria and Calgary to attend. There were approximately 100 contestants competing in a variety of competitions from calf roping, steer wrestling, wild cow milking, broncho riding, and more. A total of 50 horses and 50 heads of cattle were used throughout the course of the rodeo.
The stampede did not just have competitions, there was a collection of other forms of entertainment throughout the two day affair, including the city brass band performing, a parade, a clown, a celebration of the early settlers, and a large parade!
