42nd Annual Western Heritage Day

Hardin-Simmons University picked up its cowboy hat and gave a great, big yeehaw on April 25, 2024, for the 42nd annual Western Heritage Day.

4,150 attendees visited campus to travel back in time to experience a fun and educational day. 

Students learned how to wash clothes with a water pump and washboard.

Western Heritage Day aims to educate and celebrate the culture of the Big Country’s past through interactive demonstrations and hands-on learning. This free event, geared toward elementary and pre-k-aged children, is offered to the community each year. 

Western Heritage Day featured a wide array of attractions: sheep shearing, a petting zoo, longhorn viewing, a traditional chuckwagon with cooking demonstrations, a branding pit, quilt-making, and more!

Familiar groups to HSU, such as the Six White Horses and the Cowboy Band, joined the festivities, too. The Cowboy Band gave a particularly enthusiastic performance at the show and imbued the event with HSU’s own cowboy spirit! 

Gifts from the Guy Caldwell Endowment for Western Heritage and the Lee and Lou C. Evans Endowment for Western Heritage make Hardin-Simmons University’s Western Heritage Day possible.