Stampede celebrates 100th anniversary of Victory Stampede that marked end of WWI
Proceeds were meant to help veterans returning from war but it only broke even
This year is the 100th anniversary of a significant iteration in the history of the Calgary Stampede. It marked the end of the First World War: The Victory Stampede.
"People were ecstatic that the war was over. But the reality really started to hit home after that. I mean, Alberta alone had 6,000 dead, three times that wounded, more than that scarred emotionally," said Christine Leppard, the Calgary Stampede's historical specialist.
The anniversary has been marked in a number of ways. Principally, Brig.-Gen. Stephen Lacroix, Commander 3rd Canadian Division, was named the honorary parade marshal. On the grounds, an art display commemorates the work of Charles M. Russell, who contributed to the 1919 special exhibit.
There's also been a coin designed to commemorate the event.
The first Stampede was hosted in 1912 in Calgary with the backing of "the big four" cattlemen financiers: Patrick Burns, George Lane, A.E. Cross and Archibald (A.J.) McLean. But after the first year, there wasn't much support to make the event an annual affair.
"It was this one-off spectacle celebration," Leppard explained.
So the Stampede's founder, Guy Weadick, took the "Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth" on the road. In 1913, the event found a home in Winnipeg. In 1916, it was in New York.
"In the Prairies in 1913, we go into recession. Then 1914, we're at war. So there just isn't any drive to hold another Stampede in Calgary," Leppard said. "That changes after the war when they want to celebrate the end of the war and they see the Stampede as a spectacle worthy of the significant event."
So coming back to 1919, when the Stampede returned to Calgary, the event was sold not only as a celebration of the end of the war but as a patriotic way to support Canada's returning veterans.
"Now the unfortunate part is that they only ended up breaking even. So even though people came and enjoyed the celebration, there wasn't any money left over to go to those veterans organizations," Leppard said.
In part, this had to do with some sky-high entrance fees.
It cost $1 to get onto the grounds in 1919, compared with just 25 cents for other events like the Calgary exhibition. Attendance was about 57,500 for the week-long event.
"So many people just couldn't afford it. And you see that reflected in the stands. There are not many people there for the first couple days. But on the Wednesday of Stampede, the City of Calgary actually creates a city-wide holiday to encourage people to go and enjoy the rodeo and to take in the festivities, and after that participation goes up significantly," Leppard said.
Another part of Stampede that found its importance in 1919 was the "Indian Village," now known as Elbow River Camp.
"First Nations had attended in 1912 at a time when the government was restricting their movement and trying to assimilate and effectively end their culture. And in 1912, the Stampede was a space where First Nations could come and celebrate and wear traditional regalia and practise traditional ceremonies, teach their youth celebrate together."
Leppard says that First Nations communities were invited in 1912 and it was so successful in exhibiting Indigenous culture that the Indian Act was actually changed as a result by the federal government — to try to make participation in the Stampede more difficult.
But Weadick, as well as members of the First Nations communities, "work really hard to ensure that First Nations can come and camp here on Stampede Park and participate in the Stampede," Leppard said.
It wasn't until 1923 that the Stampede and Calgary Industrial Exhibition joined forces and became the annual event that still runs today.
