The Silver Spurs Rodeo is a rodeo held twice per year in

Kissimmee Kissimmee ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Osceola County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 79,226. It is a Principal City of the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Florida, Metropolitan Statistical Area, wh ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. During the late 1980s, it was one of the fifty largest rodeos in the United States, and is billed as the largest rodeo east of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...

. Since 1994, it has been the official state rodeo of Florida.

History

In 1941, the Silver Spurs Riding Club was formed in Kissimmee. In 1944, at the height of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the Riding Club sponsored a rodeo to encourage local citizens to purchase

war bonds War bonds (sometimes referred to as Victory bonds, particularly in propaganda) are debt securities issued by a government to finance military operations and other expenditure in times of war without raising taxes to an unpopular level. They are a ...

. The first rodeo was held on July 4, 1944, and in 1951, a February event was added to the calendar. The February rodeo is important enough to the region's self-image that it is a school holiday (for teachers and for students) throughout the county. The first rodeo was held on land donated by Henry O. Partin, a legendary rancher in Kissimmee who, at one point in time, owned 60,000 acres of land in Osceola County. In 1949, the Riding Club bought a 15-acre parcel of land (to which they added an additional 7.5 acres the following year), and built a stadium, stands, and a concession area. In 2003, the club built a new indoor stadium, the

Silver Spurs Arena The current Silver Spurs Arena is an 8,000-seat (11,500 seat max capacity), 33,946 square foot multi-purpose arena, in Kissimmee, Florida. It was built in 2003. It replaced the original Silver Spurs grand stand. Both are home to the Silver Spurs ...

, which features luxury seats and bar service. During the late 1980s, the rodeo was one of the fifty largest rodeos in the United States, with a purse of approximately US$60,000. By 2005, however, attendance at had dropped slightly, and as of 2009, the purse had declined to approximately $50,000. The

Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) is the largest rodeo organization in the world. It sanctions events in the United States and Canada, with members from said countries, as well as others. Its championship event is the National ...

does not list the Silver Spur Rodeo in their top 50 rodeo listing for 2009. As the demographics of the region change, with more Hispanic residents moving into the area, the rodeo has moved to increase its appeal to the new residents; it held its first Latin rodeo in 2005, weaving salsa and hip-hop music into its traditional events. In 1994, the Silver Spurs Rodeo was designated as the Official State Rodeo by the Florida Legislature.

References

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External links

Official site for Silver Spurs Rodeo
Rodeos Symbols of Florida Kissimmee, Florida 1944 establishments in Florida

History

See also

References

External links