The California Vaquero Show was founded in 1978 by the late Lou Hengehold and his friend, Chief Arnold Rojas and brought thousands of visitors to Santa Paula over many years. The family revived the show several years ago after it had not been held for over a decade.Helen Hengehold is looking forward to the Borien exhibit and sale of selected artworks. “Ed Borien was a pretty famous artist out of Santa Barbara known for his pen and ink drawings, as well as his etchings,” of the Old West. The exhibit is being culled from private collectors, she added.The vaquero - Spanish for cowboy - practiced a unique brand of horsemanship with Moorish roots in Spain brought over by the conquistadors. The accouterments of the vaquero have a style of their own: elaborately handcrafted saddles, rawhide, reins, spurs and bits, many that will be on display at the show along with Western memorabilia.Last year, about 20 vendors and exhibitors took part in the show, which included blankets, boots, buckles, holsters, chaps, belts, pistols, hats, jewelry, poker chips, books, albums, even the vintage sheet music for “Hiawatha’s Melody of Love.”“The California Vaquero Show is here to stay; last year, the parking lot was full all weekend,” said Polly Hengehold.
California Vaquero Show: The Mill’s homage to the Old West, Borien art
July 24, 2002
Santa Paula News
Paying homage to days past is the focus of the California Vaquero Show to be held at The Mill, where the Old West art of the late Ed Borien will be featured.
By Peggy KellySanta Paula TimesPaying homage to days past is the focus of the California Vaquero Show to be held at The Mill, where the Old West art of the late Ed Borien will be featured.The California Vaquero Show will be held Saturday, July 20th, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, July 21st, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at The Mill, located at the corner of Mill Street and Railroad Avenue.The Mill, a.k.a. Ventura County Landmark #69, was first established in 1886 and is the former home of Southern Pacific Milling Co. The Mill has been transformed over the years from a general feed and need store for ranchers and residents to its present day eclectic collectibles-antiques-funky persona.The Hengehold family has owned The Mill since the mid-1950s and oversaw its transformation into a shoppers’ paradise that still sports old posters, stuffed animals - bears to horses - and other assorted and impossible to list memorabilia.