Stage & Freight Event Calendar

Events

Where We Are Going ...

• April 11-13, 2024 - NSFWA Fun Days at Middlebrook, VA •Greetings NSFWA Members, The NSFWA Board would like to reach out to each of you to be sure you know that on April 11 to 13, 2024. Mr. Adam Hanger, a NSFWA Member, is hosting a very well planned "Fun Days" event at Middlebrook Virginia. Adam is announcing that he has extended the RSVP date from March 15 to March 20 . If you plan to attend, or have Questions, Please call Adam @ 540-490-2565.  Thank you from Adam & the NSFWA Board of Directors. Event Flyer
• June 15-16, 2024 - Lyndon Farm Team Competition at Lyndon, KS
   Contact: Frank Burkdoll at (785) 256-3430    https://www.facebook.com/lyndonsaddleclubinc/

 

THE NATIONAL STAGECOACH AND FREIGHT WAGON ASSOCIATION WILL BE HOSTING THEIR ANNUAL CONFERENCE IN VIRGINIA CITY, MT. THIS EVENT IS THE PRIMARY FUNDRAISING EVENT FOR THE NSFWA, A 501(C)3, Organization,
THE EVENT WILL INCLUDE SPEAKERS, DISPLAYS, A SPECIAL TOUR OF NEVADA CITY, SOClAL HOUR(S), BOARD MEETINGS AND MORE!

FOR MORE INFORMATION- PLEASE CONTACT: NSFWA PRESlDENT JEFF MCMANUS 307-272-1838 OR NSFWA EVENT COORDINATOR, ASHLEE GANOUNG 406-581-1154 AHGANOUNG@GMAlL.COM

 

• July 19-21, 2024 - Additional Event of Interest: Bannack Days, Dillon, MT
Event Link: https://southwestmt.com/events/bannack-days/
(Please note that this event is NOT sponsored by NSFWA)

 

Where Have We Been?

2022

Spring Fun Days event was held us Dillon and Bannack, on June 10th & 11th, 2022
 
We enjoyed:
·  Exploring the abandoned gold town of Bannack,
·  Driving the stage and freight road from Dillon to Bannack
·  A barbeque dinner with plenty of time to visit
·  Learned about the history of The Montana Trail and stories of the surrounding area
·  Guided tours of Virginia City and Nevada City, MT

 

2021

Santa Fe Trails Association
2022 marks the 200th anniversary of the Sante Fe Trail. NSFWA attend and support Santa Fe Trails Association celebration events throughout the year.

September 17-18, 2021: Rendezvous at Council Grove including the “Voices of the Wind People Pageant,” Mountain Men Exposition, Antique Wagon Show (with prizes), Blacksmith, Wheelwright, Non-motorized Parade, and participation of the Kaw Tribe. 

September 22-26, 2021: Official 200th Commemoration Activity: 
 SFTA Symposium hosted by the Bent’s Fort Chapter and the Bent’s Fort National Historic Site.  Events were held in La Junta, CO & at Bent’s Old Fort NHS and included speakers, tours, and living history.   http://www.2021sfts.com/

FUN DAYS

Patrick Goodknight hosted a Fun Day April 23-25 in Oronogo, MO. Folks had an opportunity to talk about Patrick’s wagon collection as well as others.
Randall Miller gave a blacksmith demonstration. The group also had a private tour at a local museum.

All were welcome to drive wagons to church and see a stagecoach stop and wagon road in the area.

 

2019

May 8-11, 2019
NSFWA Conference –Tremonton/Promontory Summit, UTevent
“The Driving of the Golden Spike” event celebrates one of the most iconic and life-altering events in America's history. The Transcontinental Railroad was completed in Utah on May 10, 1869. Through a series of activities, events and reenactments, the Spike 150 initiative aims to inspire, educate, and reflect on the Transcontinental Railroad legacy which proves that great things are possible with vision, hard-work, dedication, innovation, and collaboration.

April 26-27, 2019
"A Texas Gathering for NSFWA" (Fun Daze) - Wortham, TX

 

2018

Sept.7-9, 2018   Fun Daze - Polson/Dayton, MT (more information)
NSFWA's "FUN DAZE" was held at the Jim & Donna Pomajevich ranch at Proctor, MT September 7-9, 2018.
Photo Gallery

June 15, 2018 National Stagecoach & Freight Wagon Association members and friends participated in a huge “Preserving the West” Parade in Dillon, MT. This event was organized by The Montana Stock Growers Association and the Parade consisted of horse/mule entries, ridden and driven. NSFWA Vice President Rawhide Johnson worked with the MSGA to make this event a success.

March 15-18, 2018
NSFWA 11th Annual Conference was held in Tucson/Tubac, AZ


2017

September 27-30, 2017
Our 2017 Conference “The Santa Fe Trail: America’s First Highway of International Commerce” was held in Olathe, KS in cooperation with the Santa Fe Trail Association September 27-30, 2017.


July 21-23, 2017
Ash Hollow, NE held a 150-year governor’s signature celebration “Convergence On Sacred Grounds” with many interesting events.
Visit Garden County

August 19-20, 2017
Summers in Nevada City, MT include living history weekends. On the weekend of August 19-20, 2017, the theme was “The Ways West” and included many coaching and freighting subjects. Check the website for additional information about these educational weekends as well as lodging and accommodation information in this area.
Montana Heritage Commission
Nevada City Living History
The Ways West Schedule flyer - event details

 

2016

July 13—16, 2016 ~ NSFWA 9th Annual Conference in Sheridan, WY

The NSFWA and Sheridan WYO Rodeo worked together to offer many planned events: There were displays of stagecoaches, Conestoga wagons, specialty wooden-wheeled vehicles, cavalry cannons, chuck wagons, and freight wagons. The Sheridan WYO Rodeo organized a 10 to 20-mule team, pulling heavy freight wagons loaded with wool. We listened to professional guest speakers share the history of the Bozeman Trail days of long ago.

We offered free rodeo tickets to a spectacular PRCA rodeo, plus an elegant free barbeque (-BQ) for all members. We also enjoyed a historic parade down the Old Sheridan Main Street: one of the largest horse and horse-drawn vehicle parades in Wyoming. Sheridan is the epicenter of the end of the Indian wars and is located very close to Emigrant Trails, Fort Phil Kearney State Historic Site and Custer Battlefield Museum. Sheridan hosts the Don King Museum and the Brinton Museum.

 

2015
July 10th & 11th ~ Deadwood Stagecoach Days and History Symposium Deadwood, SD

1 1 1

June 18th - 21st, 2015 ~ Yellowstone Stagecoach 100th Anniversary Reunion West Yellowstone, MT

Members of the National Stagecoach and Freight Wagon Association displayed 17 original Yellowstone Coaches and Mountain Wagons on the lawn of  West Yellowstone Museum during their 8th Annual Conference on Saturday, June 20, 2015.

“Each of these horse-drawn vehicles has a history that can be traced back through years of use transporting “tourists” within Yellowstone Park.  This is likely the most Yellowstone Coaches ever to be in one location in nearly a century,” said Ashlee Ganoung of the NSFWA.

This historic event, “1915: The Twilight of Stagecoaches in Yellowstone”, commemorated the hundredth anniversary of the last year that coaches were used in Yellowstone National Park.  In 1916, motorized transportation replaced the Yellowstone Coaches.

The occasion offered horse-drawn vehicle enthusiasts an opportunity to investigate, photograph and compare side-by-side examples of original and restored Yellowstone Coaches some valued at over $75,000.

Historical presentations made during the event describing the use of these rare vehicles and the history of their operation in transporting early visitors to see the wonders of Yellowstone Park.

The event was well attended with nearly 100 NSFWA members taking part along with members of the public who enjoyed the Yellowstone Coach display.

 

June 19th-21st, 2015 ~ 8th Annual NSFWA Conference & Fundraiser
“1915: The Twilight of Stagecoaches in Yellowstone” in West Yellowstone, MT

Details

 

2014

July 25-26, 2014 ~ Annual Conference in Ogden, UT

Our annual meeting and conference was held July 25-26, 2014 in Ogden, Utah. Activities included several regionally focused historical presentations, a tour of Eli Anderson's 200+ vehicle collection, a tour of Union Station, and a group membership forum.

A special thanks to Eli Anderson (Founder of Wagonland Adventure) for the hospitality, tours and sharing of his diverse vehicle collection at a wonderful event held at his facility in Tremonton, Utah, July 26, 2014.

Labor Day Weekend, 2014 ~ History Symposium in Deadwood, SD

~ At the invitation of the City of Deadwood, South Dakota, our organization participated in an event focused on promoting Deadwood's horse-drawn vehicle collection at the Days of '76 museum and rodeo grounds. Opportunities for NSFWA participation in this event included an historic photo presentation depicting the importance of horse-drawn vehicles in and around Deadwood, an interpretive demonstration of stagecoaches and freight wagons, an invitational wagon show on Main Street, a walking tour of museum vehicles, stagecoach and wagon demonstrations, chuckwagon cook-off, wagon show and dust off, talks by noted historians and wagon experts, old-fashioned games, living history presentations, entertainment by cowboy musician Paul Larson, and blacksmith, saddle maker, chuck wagon cooking demonstrations and more! The Deadwood Historic Preservation Commission, Deadwood History, Inc., and the National Stagecoach and Freight Wagon Association thank you for attending Deadwood Stagecoach Days: 1876-1890.


2013

The 2013 NSFWA Annual Conference was held in Virginia City, MT July 10-14, 2013. We had a number of very interesting speakers provide historical presentations on the early mining, stagecoaching, and freighting history of the region. In addition, we were able to tour the historic towns of Virginia City and Nevada City. Those tours included open access to a wide variety of historic buildings and allowed for detailed examination of numerous horse-drawn vehicles. We were also able to tour one of the historic stage routes and an original stage stop as well as an original mining mill in Alder Gulch.

 

2012

NSFWA started off 2012 by gathering in Cheyenne, WY for our Annual Director’s Meeting. The Cheyenne Frontier Days Museum was gracious enough to allow us to host a mixer party in their Art Gallery and we had a wonderful turnout of about 50 guests, representing several organizations. Saturday was largely devoted to our Director’s meeting, with an exciting field trip out to tour CFD’s Carriage and Wagon Collection!

Cheyenne Photos

May, 2012 found our group in La Junta, CO at Bent’s Old Fort. In conjunction with their wonderful event, we held our 5th Annual Conference. Gerry Groenewold, Rawhide Johnson, Doug Hansen and Greg VanCoevern were all attendees at Bent’s Fort. Not only did some of our director’s bring their own vehicles, but some were speakers and presenters as well. It was an energetic gathering of trail authorities, re-enactors, wagon buffs and history enthusiasts – all meshed into one great big group of Bent’s Old Fort supporters!

Bent's Fort Photos

NSFWA member, Ray Stokes, generously volunteered to attend and represent the NSFWA at Virginia Dale’s 150th Celebration held in June, 2012 in Virginia Dale, CO. As you will note in the below letter, Ray had nothing but exciting endorsements for this grand event in this little, off-the-beaten-path community.

Old West and Trail History by Ray Stokes

Virginia Dale Church Services and Summer Kid's Program

Virginia Dale Celebration

In June, two of our Director’s attended Brian Lebel’s Old West Show and Auction in Denver, CO. Both Rawhide Johnson and Ashlee Ganoung were on hand at the vendor show, with a table to help promote the NSFWA.


The Oregon California Trail Association (OCTA) held their annual conference in Lawrence, KS in August, 2012. Director Greg VanCoevern cordially promoted our Association to the trail enthusiasts that flocked to the OCTA convention.

In August, 2012 long-time member Jem Blueher hosted a small “membership drive” at his shop in Livingston, MT. It was a potluck affair with tasty treats, cold drinks, history lessons and the most heart-felt camaraderie that we feel privileged to call part of our young association.

Meeteetsee’s 100 Year’s Celebration held over the Labor Day Weekend in Meeteetsee, WY. Director Jeff McManus was vital to this event, not only by promoting stagecoaches and freight wagons – but by driving one of them in the local parade!

 

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