Pioneer Day Celebration

On the morning of July 24, Fairview starts early. In 2026 the fireman’s wakeup sounded at 6:00 a.m., the same hour the fun run set off. Teams were out for the Scrambalooza by 6:30. At 7:00 the firemen began serving breakfast while the flag went up at the flag-raising ceremony. Vintage cars were on display from 9:00. At 10:30 the children’s parade stepped off, half an hour ahead of the Pioneer Day parade at 11:00.

The city set rules for the parade route. Bouncy balls were not permitted. A sound-free area for autistic families was kept at the starting area. Parade units are asked whether they carry drums, music or singing and whether they will throw candy. The form also asks whether an entry is coming over from the Spring City parade. After the parade came an EMT luncheon at noon and old-fashioned games for children at 1:00. A horse parade went through at 6:00. The second night of rodeo began at 7:30, and a dirt dance followed it.

Rodeo nights and the derby

Parade day falls near the end of a celebration that in 2026 ran most of July. It opened July 13, 14 and 15 with Lace Days at the Fairview Museum, from ten in the morning to four in the afternoon. On July 18 families played pickleball at 7:00 a.m. and corn hole at 7:00 p.m. On July 20 the museum held its Ice Breaker, an evening of children’s games and prizes, free to everyone.

The arena nights came next. An ATV rodeo ran on July 21, with tickets at $5 sold at the door and at City Hall. July 22 belonged to the youngest riders: a Mini Rodeo at 6:00 and the Kids Rodeo at 7:00. The full rodeo ran two nights, July 23 and 24, at 7:30. Tickets were $10, and children 2 and younger got in free. All seating at every rodeo was general admission.

On July 25 the gates opened at 5:00 for the Demolition Derby at 6:30, and a fireworks show followed. The program closed on July 26 with the Daughters of Utah Pioneers program at 7:00 p.m. in the Rock Church, at 100 N. 100 E.

The museum on 100 East

A block down the same street, at 55 North 100 East, stands the Fairview Museum of History and Art. Golden Sanderson, a collector of pioneer artifacts, and Lindon Graham, a woodcarver, painter and poet, founded it in 1966. In 2026 it marked sixty years. The campus has five buildings: the modern Horizon Building, the former Fairview Elementary School (now the Heritage Building), the restored Old City Hall, a granary and a pioneer cabin. Early farm equipment, blacksmith tools, wagons and vehicles stand outdoors among sculptures and monuments. Admission is free, and donations are accepted.

The museum lists Lace Days and Pioneer Days among its recurring events. A nonprofit corporation runs it with a volunteer board. Branch Cox, the board’s president, was one of three men taking entries for the 2026 car show. Ron and Kathie Giles sit on the same board and help run the gift shop.

The Gileses and the honorees of 2026

The Gileses were the Grand Marshals of the 2026 parade. That year the celebration fell alongside the nation’s 250th anniversary. “We feel it an opportunity, an honor, and a privilege to be Grand Marshals for the Fairview Pioneer Days,” the couple told the Daily Herald.

Ron grew up in Mount Pleasant and Kathie in Fairview. They graduated together from North Sanpete High School in 1962, married in 1968, and raised three children in Fairview. Ron worked for Utah Power & Light, later Rocky Mountain Power, and served 22 years in the Utah Army National Guard. He then spent 16 years in city government, 12 on the City Council and four as mayor. In those years the city built its senior center and the rodeo arena and installed pioneer memorial monuments. Kathie spent 33 years working with children at Fairview Elementary School.

For 13 years the couple were general chairs of Fairview Pioneer Days, and in that time the celebration grew from two days of activities to ten. They built the city’s parade float by hand for 23 years in a row. They also helped start the Demolition Derby, which the Herald calls one of the town’s signature events.

The 2026 Rodeo Grand Marshal was Clancy Johnson, who has lived in Fairview all his life. He graduated from North Sanpete High School in 1969 and played on its state championship basketball team. He served in an engineering battalion of the Utah National Guard and spent his working life building high-voltage power lines. For more than 40 years he bought, raised, bred and raced horses across the western United States, and he retired from the sport in 2015. “My horses all paid their way,” he told the Herald, “but I didn’t make much outside of that.” In town he is seen riding a six-wheeled side-by-side. When people ask how he is doing, he answers, “Better than I deserve.” On being chosen, he said: “I’ve had more fun than most. That’s about all I want in the paper. People already know too much about me.”

The 2026 Rodeo Queen was Kadience Allred, daughter of Sam and Traci Allred of Spring City. She is a fifth-generation horsewoman and runs barrels on the North Sanpete High School rodeo team.

North Bend, and the first Twenty-Fourth

Fairview itself dates to 1859. Its first settlers came from Mt. Pleasant and called the place North Bend. In 1864 the name was changed, because the town’s high elevation gave a fair enough view of the valley. By 1900 Fairview was the center of a wealthy farming district. It supported four general stores, a furniture store, a harness shop, two hotels, a butcher shop, a planing mill, and half a dozen steam sawmills at points in the mountains.

The date the town keeps belongs to the whole state. July 24 is an official Utah holiday. Between July 21 and 24, 1847, the first company of Latter-day Saint pioneers reached the Salt Lake Valley, which was then part of Mexico. According to the Utah Historical Society, the settlers first celebrated the day on July 24, 1849. The program had celebratory gunfire, music, patriotic speeches and a reading of the Declaration of Independence, mixed with religious rhetoric. In the afternoon came a communal meal, shared by the settlers, local Native Americans, and gold miners passing through on their way to California.