The annual Old Town Newhall Cowboy Festival is the perfect opportunity for Santa Clarita residents and local Western enthusiasts to celebrate our town’s roots. The three-day event, which began on April 19 and lasted from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. each day, gave participants the chance to explore the western live music, food staples, cowboy culture and more western themed festivities.
Many people may recognize William S. Hart as our school district’s namesake, but not many people know the man behind the name. William S. Hart, a famous actor in the early 20th century, was especially recognized for his “fresh approach to Westerns that continues to influence the genre today” (SCVHistory.com). Over the span of 11 years, Hart produced and played in more than 60 movies. He eventually retired and passed away in Newhall, where he left his house as a museum for William S. Hart Regional Park. The park now serves as the location for the annual Cowboy Festival. In honor of celebrating our valley’s western legacy, the yearly Newhall Cowboy Festival is hosted there for all Santa Clarita residents to enjoy.
David Knutson, the organizer of the event for over six years, explained that this year was the 28th annual Cowboy Festival. He stated, “It is a combination of living history, music, food, entertainment [and] lots of just fun things to do for everyone. There are activities [like] rodeo roping, ax throwing, archery, mechanical bull riding, candle making [and] panning for gold … it is a free event for the public to come out to and celebrate our Western heritage.”
Scattered across the park, swarms of people in cowboy hats and boots could be seen enjoying all that the festival had to offer. Attendees could choose from funnel cake, pizza, kettle corn, lemonade and, of course, the event’s unique and famous peach cobbler. Vendors and their booths lined the streets, offering Western landscape paintings, cowboy hats, belts and boots as well as other fun Western memorabilia.
Attendee and Santa Clarita resident Jim McCartney shared, ”I used to go to all the shops, but after 25 years of this, I have pretty much gotten everything, every little trinket I’ve ever wanted. Probably four of them.”
Throughout the course of the event, the distinct sound of country music rang through the venue, giving it its unique Western feel. The event boasted three stages for live performers to play in. Some noteworthy performances include Sarah Winchester, Sourdough Slim and Water Tower. On stage, performers played music from genres like cowboy, folk and bluegrass. “Originally they wanted to keep [the music] all western, not country western, but western, and now [as] you [can] hear, we have evolved [to] new sounds [that are] more rock and roll,” McCartney expressed. “The longest running one is Dave Stamey and he has a really good western sound, and then the funniest one is Sourdough Slim and he plays the accordion and he sings [songs] like Barnacle Bill the Sailor.”
There were also several other fun activities for both adults and kids to partake in. One exciting new addition to this year’s lineup was Oak Tree Gun Club Archery. Another activity new to this year’s festival was the Pioneer Corner, which was brought to the event by Gilchrist Farms. The Pioneer Corner provided a unique experience of “living history” such as panning for gold, leather stamping, wood churning, candle making and yarn spooling. Another unique activity was historical re-enactments of Buffalo Soldiers and their horses, where attendees learned more about the contributions of Black men in the American West.
One notable activity offered at the event was a tintype photography booth for those who wanted their very own vintage portrait. Schnittker Photography, a family-run business, aims to give people a look into the past with their historical photography. “Tintypes originated around the 1850s [and] it was one of the first forms of photos. [It is] done with a lot of chemicals [and] was mostly popular and used around the Civil War,” Em Schnittker, an employee and family member of Schnittker Photography, shared. To make these photos, Schnittker must follow a tedious and long process that entails submerging a tin plate in a chemical, capturing the photo [and] then letting it develop in a darkroom.
“My favorite part is running the camera. I really like the different people I get to interact with. Every photo is unique so it is completely different for each one. There’s a thousand different things that can go wrong for each photo so it is always interesting to problem solve those,” Schnittker expressed.
Volunteers took charge and ensured both the safety and the enjoyment of attendees. Knutson revealed, “We really could not do it without the volunteers. They do everything for us. From [helping with] our carnival games, helping with VIP, helping with the stages [and] helping [with] line control. The [volunteers are] here to support our vendors who can’t leave their booth from 10 to 6, so they get the menus of all the food vendors and go around and take orders.”
McCartney believes what draws people to the event is “the nostalgia … [when you’re] walking down that street in your cowboy gear, it really made you feel like you had stepped back in time and that’s what this is; a lot of nostalgia.”
It is safe to say that no matter who you are, Newhall’s yearly festival has something for everyone. “We try to target everyone so that everyone has a good time. You do not necessarily have to be a fan of country music or anything like that, you can just come out to appreciate the park and living history,” Knutson concluded.
