Chadron’s 38th annual Fur Trade Days Celebration picks up speed today with the Traders’ Market opening at the Courthouse Lawn from noon-7 today and 9-4 tomorrow.
Also at the courthouse will be staff and birds from the Black Hills Raptor Center, holding a meet-and-greet from noon-6:00.
The 100 and 200 blocks of West 2nd have activities beginning at noon and culminating with a Street Dance that runs till 1 am, a schedule that repeats on Saturday has both blocks closed to through traffic.
There are lots of options for Fur Trade events this evening. At the Courthouse, the Chadron Community Church is holding a BBQ that leads into the Historic Fur Trade Flag Ceremony at 6:00, which is followed at 6:30 by a program from the Raptor Center.
The 24th annual Fur Trade Days Jamboree at the Olde Main Street Inn gets started at 6:00 and runs through 1 am on Sunday while the Fur Trade Days Art Show begins its run at the Chadron Arts Center from 5-8:00 tonight and noon-4 pm tomorrow.
Tonight is also the first night of Trading Stories, A Native American Film Festival at the Chadron Public Library and sponsored by the Library, Library Foundation, and the Museum of the Fur Trade…which will show the 1955 feature film Crazy Horse tomorrow night at 7:00.
Spokesman Marguerite Vey-Miller says the idea behind the festival is establish new links between the Native American and Fur Trade cultures through movies dealing with Native Americans that were either filmed or set in this area.
Showing at the library tonight and tomorrow night will be documentaries at 5:00 and feature films at 7:00, all filmed in or related to this area. Former Oglala Sioux President Cecelia Fire Thunder will introduce tonight’s documentary while Native American filmmaker Jesse Short Bulls introduces the 2 showing tomorrow night.
Short Bull will return Sunday as part of 1:00 discussion of film making with Bill Matson, who directed the documentary on Ernie LaPointe titled Sitting Bull’s Voice. LaPointe will speak before and after discussion, talking at noon on his soon-to-be published book on Sitting Bull, then introducing Sitting Bull’s Voice at 3:00.
Also getting underway tonight is the 6th annual Classic Car Show, which moved from downtown to Wilson Park last year. Spokesman Tye Pourier says the schedule has been expanded tonight with 3 events for owners including car cruise around town.
The Classic Car Show itself…with vehicles spanning more than 8 decades…is tomorrow from 8 am to 10 pm along the upper loop in Wilson Park.
Tomorrow’s always busy scheduled gets started early with the Chadron York Rite bodies annual all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast from 7-noon at the Masonic Hall and the 35th annual Chadron Rotary Colter Run at 7:30 at the Armstrong Gym….offering the choice of 10K or 5K runs and a 2-mile Fun Run/Walk.
The pace picks up with the Rotary Kids Parade at 9:45 at 5th and Main leading into the 38th annual Fur Trade Days Parade at 10:00.
Immediately after the parade, the Bald Mountain Rounders will play at the Courthouse Gazebo…sharing the lawn with the Chamber of Commerce Buffalo Burger BBQ while the 1st Congregational Church offers its homemade ice cream social right across the street at the same time.
In a change from past years, the World Championship Buffalo Chip Toss will start at noon instead of 1:00, but it will still happen on Main Street in front of the courthouse.
Back for a third year is the historical cemetery tour at the Greenwood Cemetery with local residents portraying 7 figures from Chadron’s past who are buried there. The tour will be offered twice, at 4:0 and again at 7:00. It’s a fundraiser to help continue to upgrade and beautify the new cemetery information kiosk
Also back, but at 6:00 is the Fur Trade Days Ranch Rodeo at the Fairgrounds….preceded by the rodeo calcutta at 5:15.
This year’s Fur Trade Days wraps up Sunday with the Masonic Hall again hosting the Pancake Breakfast from 7 till noon, a new event at Chadron State Park at 1:00…the Golden Arrow Obstacle Course, and a second Ghost Hunting Tour with Richard Dabney…which meets at the Library at 5:00. The first tour yesterday drew about 2 dozen participants.