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Our History

The beginning of the Vigilante Rodeo & Saddle Club started years before the official formation of the club with Butte’s first annual rodeo being produced in 1931 by Kramer-Spillium-Murphy. The annual rodeo continued to be produced in Butte by different producers until 1945 when the South Side Businessmen’s Club formed a plan to take over. In 1946 they bought the rodeo grounds for $10,000 and bought out the producer for another $5000. The Southside Businessmen continued to produce the annual rodeo through 1947 at which point they turned over the rodeo & rodeo grounds to the Vigilante Rodeo and Saddle Club.

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In 1957 The saddle club started the plans to purchase the old dog track and build a new arena which was located west of the old Brooks Hanna Ford Dealership on Harrison Avenue. This facility hosted the rodeo and events for almost 50 years, until the point came in 2001 that people were having to park 10 blocks away. At which time it was decided that a larger facility was needed. In 2002 Butte cowboy and nationally respected businessman, Don Harrington, donated 22.2 acres to the Vigilante Rodeo & Saddle Club to build the new and current rodeo grounds. The arena is named the Don Harrington Arena, in honor of Don's gracious donation.

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Don, a Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame inductee, was instrumental in starting the college rodeo team at the University of Montana, Missoula where he roped calves and rode bareback horses and stumbled into a life-long career as rodeo announcer with his “Golden Voice”. In 1974 he was selected as the announcer for the National College Rodeo Finals in Bozeman, Montana, National High School Rodeo Finals in Tomah, Wisconsin and the National Finals Rodeo in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Don is the only announcer to have worked all three of these National Finals Rodeos in the same year.

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It seemed only befitting that Don’s announcing career ended in 2004 when he announced his final rodeo right here at the Don Harrington Arena.​

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Photo Credit: Amanda Morton

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