A Wedding Feast and a Racehorse Victory
A matrimonial celebration in the Baird country concludes with a high-stakes horse race featuring a mare named Pantages.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Mr. Alba Anderson and Miss Lora Stark were united in the holy bonds of matrimony last Wednesday at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Jas. Stark, three miles southwest of Baird. Rev. A. L. Corbally, an old pioneer minister of Waterville, officiated. A sumptuous repast was served immediately after the ceremony and festivities continued until 5 o'clock when the party adjourned to the Pierpont ranch to witness a horse race which Mr. Pierpont had arranged for their pleasure. The race was won by Mr. Pierpont's famous race mare, Pantages. Immediately after the race, the young couple departed for Coulee City, accompanied by Mr. and Mrs. Jessee Stark, where they took the train for Seattle en route to Los Angeles.
“The festivities were continued till 5 o'clock when the party adjourned to the Pierpont ranch to witness a horse race which Mr. Pierpont had arranged for their pleasure.”
This account captures the intersection of family milestones and local recreation in rural Washington. The celebration's shift from a religious ceremony to a track-side event at a private ranch illustrates the tight-knit nature of pioneer society at the time.
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