 oon after Houstoun Waring became editor of the Littleton Independent, he began looking for ways to promote Littleton. In 1928, he came upon the idea to celebrate the 100th birthday of Richard S. Little, the city's founder, with a "Homecoming" for everyone who had ever lived in or visited Littleton.
Originally the Homecoming was set for May 12, 1929, on Little's birthday, but when it was pointed out that railroad rates dropped in August and therefore "...people can come from great distances without much expense," the now traditional August date was set.
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| Western Welcome Parade, 1962. |
Among the festivities was a parade, sponsored by the Hose Company, who invited everyone with a decorated car or truck to participate. As luck would have it, rain accompanied the parade, but that did not dampen the spirits of participants or spectators. An Essex, entered by the Bussard Motor Company won first place in the car division, while the winning truck represented Valore Hardware.
The following are highlights of Western Welcome Week history:
1931
Featured the appearance of two airplanes. The Littleton Independent printed up handbills and had the pilots drop them among the throngs on Main Street. Certain ones were redeemable for $1 at the Independent. The Independent also invited the two pilots to give rides to Littletonites at $1 apiece.
1933
Now sponsored by the Hose Company, as well as the Chamber of Commerce, Jaycees and the Junior Women's Club, the afternoon parade was preceded in the morning by carnival rides and competitions and followed in the evening by a huge dance at the newly opened Sterne Park. It also snowed; ruining the Littleton Independent's annual contest to predict the date of the first snowfall before it had begun.
1937
A trick cow, Queenie, who proved to be one of the sensations of the parade, led the Homecoming Day parade, which celebrated Littleton's 75th anniversary.
1950
First annual Lion's Club barbeque.
1952
The 1952 Homecoming Days festivities were almost skipped until just a few weeks before they were scheduled; Jack Thomas and Verne Bergman of the Chamber of Commerce took the initiative and got things rolling. The waning of enthusiasm might have been a reflection of the malaise and fear of the Cold War era.
Houstoun Waring, editor emeritus of the Littleton Independent, founded the Old Timer's Luncheon as a way to bring the core of the city's citizenry together. Awards were given for the oldest, the person who came the greatest distance and more.
1958
The grand parade had a special significance as Colorado Governor Steve McNichols cut the ribbon officially opening Littleton Blvd. The parade fell in behind McNichols with Littleton Mayor A. N. Williams, Mayor John Caulkins of Greenwood Village, Mayor Ed Scott of Englewood, and County Commissioner John Christensen.
1959
The first Sidewalk Art Show was held in 1959. The Horseshoe Tournament was new this year.
1960
Homecoming and the Little Britches Rodeo were combined under the theme of Riding High in 60.
1961
The celebration this year was devoted to the Sister City Exchange which was started in 1961 by two newspaper editors--Houstoun Waring and Curley Anabel, editor or the Bega, Australia newspaper. The entire parade had an Australian theme under the chairmanship of Bob DeKoevend of the Jaycees.
1962
This was the first year that the term Western Welcome Celebration was used. It started out under the name Homecoming Days, later it became Westward Ho Days; and finally in 1962, a resident George Landers, renamed it to Western Welcome Week.
1966
Jose Trujillo and his brothers took over the organization of the Horseshoe Tournament; they have been playing in it since it began in 1959.
1967
The 1967 parade again had a Bega theme. Grand marshals were the Dom Brady family from Bega, Australia. The Littleton YMCA started the annual Fun Run.
1968
Littleton Then and Now was the theme of the parade. The Friends of the Library and Museum started the Used Book Sale, with proceeds benefiting the Bemis Public Library and the Littleton Historical Museum
1976
The first logo was done in 1976; it was the letters WWW and a drawing of a horse inside a circle. The logo later became a cowboy boot with the letters WWW on the top part of the boot.
1977
The 1977 Western Welcome Week also doubled as "Houstoun Waring Week" with the theme of 50 Years of Headlines. Waring led the parade as grand marshal.
1979
By 1979 one of the most important and popular events in Littleton's Western Welcome Week was the sidewalk art show. In it's 20th year in 1979 the show was more than a display of fine art. 1979 was also the first year for the Fiddlin' Contest.
The first Carousel of Music concert was held in the courtyard at the Littleton Center. People brought their picnics and enjoyed the music of the Gold Nugget Brass Band and the Littleton Chorale.
Western Welcome Week was part of the Littleton Chamber of Commerce. It was a tradition to have club and civic organizations' representatives sit on the WWW Board: for example, Breakfast Optimist, Downtown Merchants, Optimists, Elks, Jaycees, Lion, Rotary, Y's Men, and Woodlawn Merchants. The Littleton Chamber of Commerce was the coordinator.
1980
In 1980 the first Golf Tournament and Family Pancake Breakfast was held, featuring all-you-can eat pancakes and sizzlin' sausage by Jose's Restaurant.
1981
The first Children's Parade, sponsored by the Littleton Fire Department, was held in conjunction with Family/Festival Day.
1982
Western Welcome Week, Inc. was incorporated in 1982; the announcement of incorporation of the annual WWW festivities was made by the Centennial Chamber of Commerce.
A nine-member board for Western Welcome Week, Inc. was responsible for setting policy guidelines, designating a charity or cause to receive the proceeds, and appointing a chairman and co-chairman to organize the event each year. Houstoun Waring, editor emeritus of the Littleton Independent, was appointed as chairman emeritus of Western Welcome Week.
This year included the first WWW Horse Show.
1983
WWW no longer operated under the auspices of the Chamber of Commerce, it became totally dependent upon the business community and any fund raising events which contributed to the operating funds. The practice of corporate sponsorships began. Entry fees for the various events made up the rest of the operating budget.
1987
In 1987, the life-size four-figure bronze sculpture entitled "Homeward Bound" was dedicated at a ceremony as part of Western Welcome Week. The City of Littleton's Fine Arts Committee commissioned the sculpture by a Steamboat Springs sculptress, Susan Grant Raymond, after viewing 30 other entries. Susan Raymond who grew up in Littleton, helped dedicate the sculpture which consists of two draft horses led by a man with a child riding one of the horses and a colt trailing behind the team. The sculpture is located at the intersection of South Prince and Santa Fe Drive adjacent to the South Platte River.
The Jackass Hill Ski Patrol, formed by a group of Littleton City employees, marched for the first time in the WWW grand parade. Sporting tee-shirts with a cartoon jackass and the theme "Catch the Spirit--Ski Jackass Hill," they captured the hearts of parade watchers and officials, winning the first place trophy.
1988
Western Welcome Week celebrated its 60th Anniversary this year. The theme for Western Welcome Week was Where the West is Fun! The parade theme Western Hands Across the Sea, recognized the Bega/Littleton Sister City Exchange; Houstoun Waring and the Hanzlik family from Bega, Australia were the honored guests.
1990
This year's theme was One Hundred Years Young in honor of Littleton's 100th anniversary. The parade had six grand marshals. All were long-time residents and current or former Main Street merchants.
Also, this year a new event added spice to the traditional events with the Opening Night Concert and Fireworks in Sterne Park. The Arapahoe Philharmonic performed with T. Gordon Parks conducting.
1991
WWW Board of Directors honored Houstoun Waring with the "Houstoun Waring Lifetime of Distinguished Service to the Community" award.
1995
To celebrate the end of World War II in August of 1945 the theme of the parade was Littleton Remembers the '40s. In 1995, the parade had several additions focusing on the 50th anniversary of World War II. WWII-vintage planes did a fly-by over the parade. When US soldiers returned to Hawaii from the Pacific in WWII, they were welcomed home by parades of Pa'u riders. This year dancers from Halau Hula Pluanani'ohelohelo, Colorado's own traditional hula school, rode in the parade to recreate that welcome.
More than 200 artists and crafts people displayed their wares at the WWW Arts and Crafts Festival, held on parade day.
A "Peek Preview" tour of Littleton's still-developing Hudson Gardens was held on the first Sunday.
1996
WWW Board President Jerry Healey announced to Littleton City Council that WWW had chosen the Grand Parade theme, Littleton Embraces the Future, to focus on the upcoming millennium. He highlighted several of the Board's goals regarding the millennium including the planning of a millennium celebration and raising money for a lasting legacy for the community.
Marilyn McKinnell, long time Littleton resident and supporter of Western Welcome Week, received the "Houstoun Waring Lifetime of Distinguished Service to the Community" award.
Hudson Gardens opened June 1996. They hosted an open house during Western Welcome Week.
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| Western Welcome Week parade, c. 1997. |
1997
In September of 1997 the Littleton Millennium Committee, a subsidiary of Western Welcome Week, was initiated with the approval of the Littleton City Council.
The 1997 Western Welcome Week was dedicated to the memory of Houstoun Waring (1901-1997). The theme was Roundup to the Millennium.
1998
Western Welcome Week celebrated its 70th anniversary. The Millennium Committee announced that they planned to build a Clock Tower as a gift to the Littleton Community.
1999
Fundraisers were held by the Littleton Millennium Committee to raise money for the Millennium New Years Eve celebration "Tennies & Bubbles". It was a family party given for the community.
Littleton, Colorado was designated as a Millennium Community. Kelli Narde, Assistant to the City Manager and a member of the Littleton Millennium Committee, submitted the paper work and historical information to the committee in Washington, D.C. who made this selection.
2000
WWW receives national recognition as a Library of Congress Local Legacy. The Local Legacies project was a part of the Library of Congress Bicentennial (1800-2000) program. The project documented distinctive examples of a community's cultural heritage in each of the nation's 50 states, congressional districts, trusts and territories.
WWW celebrated the year 2000 with a salute to the Regional Transportation District for bringing light rail to Littleton.
2001
The WWW Millennium Legacy Clock Tower was dedicated in October and given to the City of Littleton as a gift to the community.
2002
The WWW Board opened the year feeling the impact of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on the United States. Nationally, people's thoughts were on the many acts of heroism that came out of that tragedy. This year's theme reflected the WWW Board's focus on linking the WWW theme to current events in Littleton and around the nation.
The theme of the 2002 Grand Parade Littleton Honors it Hometown Heroes reminded everyone that there are many kinds of heroes in Littleton. The goal was to thank and honor the many volunteers who made WWW possible each year.
2003
Dick and Kathy Valore of Valore Hardware were honored as Grand Marshals of Western Welcome Week. As part of the 75th Anniversary Celebration, the Western Welcome Week Board looked for an individual or business that had been in the Littleton community for 75 years or more and they selected Valore Hardware. This year's theme, Homecoming, paid homage to 75 years of celebrating Littleton's unique community spirit, heritage and unity.
Mary Bradford, long-time Littleton resident and supporter of Western Welcome Week received the "Houstoun Waring Lifetime of Distinguished Service to the Community" award.
Bibliography
Littleton Historical Museum. Photographic Archives.
____. Vertical File: "Western Welcome Week".
Littleton Independent. Littleton Independent Publishers, 1888- .
Littleton Independent. The Story of Littleton, Denver's Best Suburb, Golden Jubilee Number, July 22, 1938. Littleton: Littleton Independent Publishers, 1938.
Littleton Independent. Sixtieth Anniversary Edition, 1888-1948. Littleton: Littleton Independent Publishers, 1948.
Photographs courtesy of the Littleton Historical Museum, unless otherwise
noted; to order copies, contact the Museum at 303-795-3950.
Compiled by Pat Massengill and Phyllis Larison
Updated January 2004
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