During the first weekend in June the Olaf Wieghorst Museum Foundation in
El Cajon, CA, presents Wieghorst Western Heritage Days.

A celebration and exhibition of our Western heritage covering the area geographically west of the Mississippi River from the 1700s through the early 1900s. First inhabited by Native American Indians, then explored by trappers and mountain men, then worked by vaqueros, cowboys, prospectors, miners, cattle and sheep ranchers and railroaders, it was finally settled by the thousands of individuals who, along with their families, ranched, farmed and built the towns and cities of the West.

June 7th and June 8th, 2008
The event runs Saturday from 10:00 a.m. through 6:00 p.m.
and Sunday from 11:00 a.m. through 5:00 p.m.

Free to the public.

All of Rea Street in El Cajon is roped off for this special event that is offered by the museum at no charge so that families and people of all ages can remember and can celebrate our western heritage.

There will be three stages.

On the Main Stage and Magnolia Stage, listen to authentic western music. The Western Stage will feature cowboy poets, story tellers, Mountain Men, Buffalo Soldiers, and other historical presentations.

Wieghorst Western Heritage Days is filled with the excitement of the “Old West.” Visitors will enjoy watching a blacksmith forge horse shoes at the authentic Blacksmith Shop. Western reenactors will amaze the crowd with their gun handling skills as they ‘fight’ over that special lady; and they will demonstrate gun safety for the youngsters. Buffalo Soldiers will share their important contributions to the settling of the West and you won’t want to miss the opportunity to stroll through an accurate re-creation of a Mountain Man campsite. Watch as Native American descendants demonstrate authentic Indian dances. Have your picture taken next to a full-size replica of the Wells Fargo Stagecoach.

Visitors ages ten and younger may enter The Children’s Pavilion where they will have a chance to create their own craft projects, play old-fashioned games, and have special hands-on lessons in some of the skills needed by frontier youngsters and their families to survive. You won’t want the kids to miss the pony rides, with tickets avialable onsite.

Shoppers have plenty to choose from with western collectibles, arts and crafts, sculptures, paintings, prints, jewelry and even a custom hat maker. Also, delicious down-home cooking is served with roasted barbeque beef, and all the trimmings and the adults can get together to share their stories and enjoy a cold beer at Olaf’s Cantina.

Plenty for the Kids to do.

At the Children’s Pavilion, kids ten and younger will have a chance to create their own craft projects, play old-fashioned games, and have special hands-on lessons in some of the skills needed by frontier youngsters and their families to survive. Games and crafts are free for the kids at the Children’s Pavilion.

And don’t forget the pony rides. This is one of the favorite rides for the kids. Tickets are available onsite.

Wieghorst Western Heritage Days Vendors

Wieghorst Western Heritage Days takes pride in presenting a great variety of vendors, including: artists, sculptors, ceramics, woodwork, jewelry, Native American Indian crafts, books, custom hat makers, and western collectibles, and more.