The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

WHITBY FREE PRESS, - 1913- THE FIRST ANNUAL COUNTY TOWN HORSE % In the early 1900's, when the auto- mobl lewas growing from novelty into increasing popularity, a group of Whi tby men got t o g e ther to make pl ans for an organized horse show to be held lin the County Town. After meetings wi th the town counci1, the en thusi astic venture got off the g r o un d with t h e financial- support of C o l'o n e 1 He nry Pellatt, descr ibed in the "Gazette and Chroniclel' as "one of the wealthiest men in the Dominion", with the assistance of prominent men in Toronto and elsewhere, and through the diligent efforts of town council and the w e I I - appointed horse show committee of which the following Whitby men were k e y e x e cutive members: Fred Hatch, Pr es id ent; T. Cussion, Vice-Presi- dent, W. J. H. Richardson, Secretary; and Samuel L. Trees, Treasurer. 'st Annual Whitby Horse Show Below fol lows a charming and ical description of Whitby's lst Horse Show from the pages of the Town'swell-loved "Gazette and icle". ..Whitby expects a crowd histor- Annual County Chron- such seen in town 25¢. & autos 50¢ -II"For two days this week Whitby has madeobeisance to the Horse Beautiful. Ar ched necks, glossy coats, prancing I imbs and rounded barrels were the objects of admiration for four or five hours on each of Tuesday and Wednes- day afternoons at Whitby's first annual horse show. T h e s t r enous efforts of the Horse Show association in arranging for the first show found a fitting compliment in the remark by a citizen, and concurred inbymanyothersto the effect that "this is the biggest thing that ever happened to Whitby. " There were some pessimists in the town when the horse show was first mooted but theoptimism and the business energyof theofficers and directors had convincedeven themost skeptical that a horse show in the Ontario County Town i s not only practicabl-e, but that it has been a very decided acquisition to the attractions of Whitby. The Town Park The Town Park, where the show was h e 1 d, had been prepared at great ex- p e n s e f o r the reception of the show. The site itself is ideal for the purpose. T h e r e is doubt if t h e re is a prettier spot anywhe re in Canada used for a horse show. Indeed, Dr. Oille, of Tor- onto, one of thejudges, told the 'Gazette and Chronicle that he had judged at shows coast to coast, and had nowhere seen so pretty a place.. "You have a magnificent location here, none better anywhere, " he said. The 'purple & gold' To the natural beauty of the park, the d ecorat ions for the show lent an a d d ed c h a rm. The entrance gate was b e a utifully arched wi th evergreen and decorated wi th the horse show colours --pur ple and gold. The park had been e n c 1 o sed for the occasion wl-th a high screen of buckram. A grandstand cap - able of a cc omodating 500 persons was erected along the west side beneath the lovely youngmaplesgrowiing there. The stand was also decorated with colours. In the front, seventeen private boxes were set apart and sold. In the centre of the park, a ring had been temporarily constructed and in the c e n t r e o f thi s, the judges stand was placed. This stand had a roof of striped tent cloth, and the colours of the show were attractively entwined around it. The band stand was placed just at the south end of the grand stand, and was also decorated wi th colours. Attendance The attendance on the first day was 7 0 0 and i n c r eased on the second day to between 1800 and 2000. Never before had so many handsome horses been seen in Whitby at one time in the forty classes there were 178 en- tries, and of these the most interesting w a s th e class of Horses in Harness, Hunters and Ladies' Harness Class. A g i r d ie of people surrounded the the ring, and there were many here and there about the park. The space allot- t e d to automobiles w a s crowded, and there were many carriages. The attendance included many prom- iment out-of-town people and the boxes and grand stand contained many beautiful and handsomely gowned women. "The finest horse in Canada" as one of the judges put it, was shown, being Sir Henry Pellatt'sbeautiful bay, "Lord K i t c h e ner"l. He certainly is a prince amongst horses and won not only blue ribbons but the unstinted admiration of every beholder. Thursday, November llth, 1971, Page 3 SHOW Old Tymer' A photographer from the staft of the T o r onto Worl d'w,4s presen t and took many pictures. On the second day of the show a rec- eptionwas held at the beautiful home of Mr. S. L. Trees, Whitby. T h e M a r t in Mfg. Co. closed down during the two days of the show. continued page 12 WHITBYMAIL i THE ONE - STOP SHOPPING CENTRE * THICKSON ROAD & HWY #2 A STORE FOR YOUR EVERY NEED HOME FURNISHINGS UNISEX FASHIONS CHILDREN'S WEAR DRUG MART HARDWARE LADIE'S FASHIONS, e• TV's & STEREO's BARBER SHOP cRESTAURANT p PLUS McDONALD'S & WOtLCO DEPT. STORE &ý MIRACLE FOOD MART has for never been some lime Admission to the grounds Single carriages 25¢. Double carriages Whitby Horse Show Committee. WHITBy $2,000 l HORSE IN SHOW PRIZES TUESDAY am WNESDAYTJULY 15th and 16th, 1913 Prie. a< P fîD#Cww" iai oi iÏà lii days Eintrien oouni4og lefro»m i eartB a Qtb p rovinto., i îî~ciiT. CUSKSIN, AiLBERT W JC.' Newspaper advertisement from the 'Gazette & Chronicle' June 26. 1913.