1967-Voice Of The Tennessee Walking Horse 1967 April Voice RS | Page 8

Shelbyville PTA Horse Show
Celebrates 35th Anniversary in May
A Blue Ribbon to the Ladies!
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The Shelbyville P.T.A. Horse Show will be celebrating
it’s 35th anniversary on May 27th. The show, kno\\n as
the oldest continuous one night horse show in the ta e.
has come a long way since 1932 when two local 01 se
men, Clarence Haynes and Thomas L. Tune peisua e
their wives that horse shows could be money making proj
ects for Parent-Teacher groups.
The need for money to provide a hot lunch program in
the Shelbyville Elementary schools prompted the late Mrs.
Mary Dean Tune, whose daughter, Mrs. Isaac Bull, serves
as Treasurer of the 1967 Horse Show committee and Mrs.
Louise Haynes, to stage the first annual P.T.A. Horse
Show.
Summer of 1932 found these two ladies and theirs hus­
bands errecting seats at the old Fair Grounds and letting
it be known that a horse show was getting ready to begin.
Prizes consisted of a sack of flour, a tie or a box of
stationary, all donations from the various merchants in
the city. The judges were paid from the gate receipts
and a food booth provided extra profits.
Early shows featured an afternoon and an evening
program and according to a newspaper clipping dated
1934, “There were entires from leading horsemen through­
out this section, including Nashville. Murfreesboro, Lewis-
burg, Lawrenceburg, Winchester and College Grove.”
Mrs. Tune and Mrs. Haynes served as chairmen of
the event for six years, rotating the job of chairman of the
show and chair mm of the food both each year, until
1938 when Mrs. Franklin Boyd, assisted by Mrs. E. L.
Adamson assumed the responsibility. In 1938 the show
moved tc the Tate School .Athletic Field where bleachers
pro - ided seats for the growing crowd of spectators and
the grounds could better accommodate the additional
horses exhibited each year.
Assisted by the late Charles Eblen and Troy Young,
at that time principal of the Shelbyville Elementary
schools, Mrs. Boyd and Mrs. Adamson planned the pro­
gram, collected prize money, managed for food booth
and distributed colorful hand bills announcing the various
classes. In 1949, the show was held for the first time at
the present Celebration grounds which had been com­
pleted in September 1948.
When Mrs. Boyd’s daughter, Amie Boyd Marks, left
Shelbyville to attend school in Nashville, Mrs. Adamson
assumed chairmanship of the event and assisted by Mrs.
Robert M. Thomas served in this capacity until 1946*
Mrs. Thomas was elected chairman at the close of Mrs
Adamson’s term and with the aid of Mrs. Horace O’Don-
neley continued to do most of the work involved in put­
ting on the show. She solicited all advertisements and
sponsors and in lieu of a treasurer, signed all checks and
paid all bills. At this point, it was deemed wise to do away
with small inexpensive ribbons and purchase ribbons of
a better quality, such as those which were being used at
the already popular Tennessee Walking Horse National
edebm'on taM each year at the Celebration grounds
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l replaCed M/5- Thomas as chairmar
in 1958, it being the custom that this show be staeed
only by members of the Elementary P.T.A., and varkm-
committee members were named to assist in this worth'
while project. Mrs. C. A. McLean, Jr., served as the firsi
finance committee chairman
In 1963, Mrs. Henry C Tilford Jr having assisted
Mrs O’Donneley since 1960 became Mrs. O’Donnelev’s
successor and served in this capacity through 1965. Silver
trophies were presented in each class m observance of the
25th anniversary and have continued to be first plac^
prizes since that time.
Having served as assistant chairman with Mrs. Tilford
Mrs J. R. Snoddy served as last year’s general chairman
and Mrs. W. B. Woosley Jr., will be in charge of the event
this year. The 1966 show had an attendance 0f over
4,000 with a record 155 entries.
Seventeen classes have been listed on the program f0r
the 35th annual show with money and a trophy in each
class from 2 through 17.
Shelbyville’s Jimmy Richardson, whose music sets the
pace for horse shows all over the United States, will be
at the organ and will be playing some of the tunes which
were used at the first of these one night shows.
Judging the walking horse classes will be Richard Mary
of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Richard Witt of Blythe-
Fsrmc in Cleveland. Tennessee will tie thf*
classes.
There is an increase in this years prize money, $2450
being offered. $150 in sixteen classes and $150 in the
pleasure class. Entry fees are still $5 and may be paid at
the gate and the Celebration grounds makes free stalls
available.
Under the capable management of Mrs. W. B. Woos­
ley Jr., and her assistant, Mrs. Kennedy Maupin, this
year’s show promises to be the best yet.
THE CAROLINA OPEN GATE
By Mary L. Hinson
Rt. 41, Box 186
Sumter, S.C.
The South Carolina Horse Show Association has been
busy setting show dates, rewriting the constitution, and
changing rules. One important thing the group voted to
do was write judges names on the shows programs. The
show season h&s shows lined up for every weekend.
Guy Whitener, Jr., Billy and Bill Sledge came back
from the Gainesville, Florida Horse Show with a van
full of ribbons. Billy won the four year old class on IN­
VASION PERSUASION. This horse is something to
watch. BILLY’S HI FIVE showed the Florida circuit
what he and Bill Jr. could do. They won the preliminary
class and came back to capture the juvenile championship.
Guy says SUN’S DYNAMITE M. is a great three
year old. Guy called him the shortest, walkingest horse
ever to hit South Carolina. CATHY’S MR. SAM is a
five year old stallion that will be shown in the amateur
stake classes this year. GO BOY’S DEBBIE GIRL and
Stewart Whitener are ready for showing in the juvenile
exhibitors division this year.
Had a note from Norwood and Lila Boyce at Gay
Acres Stables saying that they have a barn full of top
horses this year. One of the top horses mentioned was
Dn Stewart Burnett’s four year old, ROCK BLUFr
ROCK. You b