Mission Statement:

Evanston Cowboy Days is a nonprofit organization setup to promote the western way of life and to serve individuals and families in Uinta County and surrounding areas.

History:

THE HISTORY OF COWBOY DAYS, INC. has been taken from interviews, newspaper clippings, letters and various event programs over the years.  Because of the success of the annual event, Cowboy Days has become Evanston’s biggest and most famous and renowned annual event, and had always been held during the Labor Day weekend.  

COWBOY DAYS first became an annual event in 1936. According to interviews in 1959 and 1961 with Dr. J. H. Holland and Robert (Bob) Rowley by, June Painter Fearn and her daughter, Sharon Fearn Rufi, it was said that the entire idea first belonged to Mr. Tom Painter, a local and well-known and well-liked rancher and stock producer throughout the area.  His idea was to bring to the folks a ranching heritage celebration.

A year or two prior to 1936 Mr. Painter approached Mr. Robert (Bob) Rowley, a locomotive engineer for the Union Pacific Railroad, to talk to him about his idea of a possible local rodeo event.  Apparently, Mr. Rowley liked the idea.  So, the two started immediately to get the ball rolling.  It was a “dream come true” for Mr. Painter, and the beginning of an annual event to not only bring to the public a portion of the wild, wild  west and the life of the American cowboy,  plus a weekend of family fun and entertainment for all.