This Miners Day, Barry Hanover marched in the parade with the League of Women Voters. Hanover first became involved with the league because of his wife, Allison, but before he marched on Monday, his family had a long history of advocating for the rights of women to vote.

“Since it was the League of Women Voters, I couldn’t wait to get (to the parade) because of this tie with my family,” Hanover said.

Hanover is from Tennessee and moved to Utah in the ’70s. His great uncle, Joseph Hanover, was a representative in the Tennessee House of Representatives when the state voted to ratify the 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote in the United States. 

In 1920, Tennessee was the last state to vote on the amendment. Joseph Hanover, or Uncle Joe, as Barry calls him, led the fight on the House floor. 

Hanover knew his uncle well, he said. 

Uncle Joe was a Jewish immigrant from Poland who came to the United States as a young child. When Joseph was young, he often asked “why mother can’t vote,” the family said. 

“That was a question he repeated,” Barry said. “He understood it, but he didn’t like it. He didn’t think it was right, even as a young boy. They never had a very good answer for him because there wasn’t a very good answer.”

When it came time for the House to vote on the amendment, the League of Women Voters, the same group Hanover marched with in the parade, asked Joseph to fight on their behalf. The amendment passed, with much effort, largely credited to Joseph’s work in the House of Representatives. 

“It’s a great heritage to be tied to that,” Hanover said. “I can’t think of anything better.”

During the suffrage movement of the late 1800s and early 1900s, the League of Women Voters and those in support of giving women the votes could be seen wearing yellow roses and white dresses. The League of Women Voters wore the same outfits this Miners Day.

At the parade, Hanover could be seen running back and forth asking people if they were registered to vote and handing out voter registration cards. Hanover said he specifically wanted to make sure the younger people and women in the crowd had the information. 

“My wife and I try to do our part largely by encouraging young people to get involved,” Hanover said. “I tell young people, ‘Whether you know it or not, I’m voting for you. I’m voting for your future.’”

As Hanover ran around handing out voter registration cards made by his wife, he was inspired by the crowd, he said. 

“Most of the people that I asked, and it was mostly young people, and especially women, when I asked them if they were registered to vote, they said, ‘Of course,’” Hanover said. “‘Yes’ is good, but ‘of course’ is great.”

The post Family legacy honored during Miners Day Parade appeared first on Park Record.

Miners Day, not Labor Day, is the big end-of-summer bash in Park City.

Monday’s celebration will continue the rituals of ball running, parades and family-friendly events in City Park, said Kristen Wright, who chairs the communitywide event overseen by Park City Rotary.

“We have so many traditions in town that have to do with our mining history, so it’s pretty easy to keep that spirit alive when we plan this thing,” she said. 

One tradition runs from 12:30 to 2 p.m. at City Park: mucking and drilling. Park City Rotary funds the competition with spoils totaling $5,000, Wright said.

“We have eight miners signed up for drilling and eight for mucking,” she said. “There is overlap, so most of them do both. It’s such a popular thing for people who want to watch it and for miners who want to participate. In fact, we have a waiting list of miners.”

The miners come from across the West, Wright said. 

“We limit it because it is hot and we want to be mindful of our spectators as well as the miners, who come from Montana, Utah and Idaho,” she said. “I so enjoy it, and the miners are so wonderful. And we don’t have issues of getting judges from the University of Utah mining department. We’ll also welcome mining-related societies who will set up tents in the area.”

Park City Rotary will also auction off the rock used for the drilling, according to Wright.

“Our good friends Cole Sweat and Robert Hickens at Mountain Valley Stone in Browns Canyon, once again have donated the stone,” she said. “They are such a wonderful partner.”

In addition to the mucking and drilling competition, local residents and visitors can dive into mining history through “Miners and Memories: A History Presentation” that runs from noon to 4 p.m. at Miners Hospital.

“Sally Elliott, a co-chair of Friends of Ski Mountain Mining History, leads these free tours,” Wright said. “When folks drop by the hospital, there will be docents who will talk about how the hospital used to run way back then.”

Friends of Ski Mountain Mining History will also be one of the main attractions of the annual Miners Day Parade that starts at 11 a.m. and runs down Main Street.

“They are going to introduce their new 7-mile Historic Mine Route hike,” she said. “So, they are doing a ribbon cutting during the parade right there in the middle of the street.”

Main Street will close at 6 a.m. on Monday to facilitate Miners Day activities, including the parade, which will feature nearly 40 participants, Wright said.

“It’s always fun to see the entries,” she said. “The Park City High School Band returns this year, and we’ll have a mariachi band and the Summit County royalty.”

Local nonprofits, such as Peace House and the Corvette Club of Utah, will also roll down the route.

“We’ll also have a BMW entry as well as High Valley Transit this year,” Wright said.

Judges, who will be set up at 505 Main St., will award $1,000 in prizes to the four best entries.

“One of those prizes is for Best Mining Theme, so we’re always trying to inject our mining history into the events we are sponsoring and organizing,” Wright said.

The annual Running of the Balls takes place at 10:30 a.m., before the parade. Then, thousands of numbered golf balls purchased by community members will be unleashed down the street. The balls wind up in different slots at the end of the route, and prizes are given to the winners.

“The whole day’s goal is to provide a fun event for the community that highlights our mining history, and the second part is fundraising for our local community grants,” Wright said. “So when people purchase balls, they are helping our grant program.”

Park City Rotary awarded area nonprofits a total of $150,000 in grants last year, according to Wright.

“Some of the money supported the expansion of the perinatal program at People’s Health Clinic,” she said. “Then out at the Peace House, one of our grants will help scale up their newly launched children’s services over the next three years.”

Park City Rotary closely looks at all grant applicants.

“We are an apolitical organization, and we are careful that these programs we support are available to all and everyone,” Wright said.

Running of the Balls will bring back the Silver Strike Ball run, which will let loose 200 silver golf balls before the yellow ones are released. The Silver Strike winner will receive a $3,000 travel package.

“We also have other prizes, including a Deer Valley pass, listed on our website,” she said.

As an added incentive, the Big Baller Club allows members a chance for bonus entries in the ball runs.

“The club is kind of new, and the whole idea is to try to find ways to make more money for those community grants,” she said. “We looked around and realized we didn’t have a VIP experience. So, if you join the Big Ballers Club, it’s $350 for one person or $550 for two. And that gets you a Silver Strike Ball, which is worth $100 and some swag and benefits.”

One of the benefits will be held from 9:30 a.m. to noon at Café Terigo.

“They will provide cocktails or mocktails, a breakfast buffet and great seats to watch the Running of the Balls and the parade,” Wright said.

It’s also a special year for the Egyptian Theatre. 

The performing arts nonprofit is celebrating its 100th anniversary, so Park City Rotary partnered with it for a special 100-Year-Old Ball run scheduled before the Silver Strike onslaught.

“The balls sold for $250 and there are only 200,” Wright said.

Those who purchased at least one of the first seven 100-Year-Old Balls to roll across the finish line will receive complimentary inclusion in the theater’s exclusive Pharaoh’s Club, according to Theater Manager Randy Barton.

“You do not need to be present to win,” he said.

Other Miners Day events include a breakfast in City Park hosted by St. Mary’s Catholic Church, a Bark City 5K run facilitated by Park City Twilight Rotary, an annual used book sale at the Park City Library and live music programmed by Mountain Town Music.

“Everything is on our website,” she said. “You can see the full schedule and you can buy your balls.”

The Miners Day schedule

• 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. — Miners Day Breakfast in City Park with St. Mary’s Catholic Church
• 8 a.m. — Bark City 5k Run in City Park (Bring your dog!) 
• 9:30 a.m. to noon — Big Baller Club is open at Café Terigo
• 10:30 a.m. — Running of the Balls on Main Street (Buy your balls now!)
• 11 a.m. — Flyover by the Commemorative Air Force, Utah Wing
• 11 a.m. — Miners Day Parade on Main Street
• 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. — Food trucks, kids’ games, vendor booths and a beer/liquor garden in City Park
• 11:45 a.m. to 4 p.m. — Live Music in the Park at the City Park Stage
• Noon to 4 p.m. — Miners & Memories: History Presentations at Miners Hospital
• 12:30 to 1 p.m. — Kids’ games in City Park
• 12:30 to 2 p.m. — Mucking and drilling competitions in City Park 

For information, visit parkcityminersday.org.

The post Miners Day celebrates Park City’s traditions appeared first on Park Record.

Park City and its world-renowned ski resorts wouldn’t exist without miners.

It’s a simple fact of life, and Parkites are undoubtedly dedicated to remembering their past as a humble working town. “Silver,” the sought-after metal buried deep underneath our modern ski and bike shops, is a word included in numerous business names, neighborhoods and street signs in the Park City area, immediately cluing in visitors to the town’s previous life.

That’s also why hundreds of people gather on Labor Day each year to celebrate Miners Day, Park City’s own unique holiday that predates Labor Day’s establishment in 1894. In fact, this year was Park City’s 130th Miners Day.

For me, though, it was my first.

As much as I’d like to say I was up bright and early to run the Bark City 5K, I slept in a little bit and didn’t hit Main Street until around 9:30 a.m., although I heard nothing but positive things about the run as I chatted with people throughout the morning.

I took a page out of our copywriter and de facto transportation reporter Parker Mortensen’s book and parked at the Richardson Flat park and ride, opting to start my own relationship with High Valley Transit’s iconic buses rather than muscling my way into a parking garage near the hullabaloo.

It was quick, painless and incredibly easy, just like our first activity on Main Street: contributing $10 to the Rotary Club to participate in the annual Running of the Balls.

In my previous life, I worked behind the scenes for FOX 13 in Salt Lake City, and I remembered seeing b-roll of the bright yellow golf balls (that I mistakenly thought were tennis balls until someone in The Park Record office corrected me last week) in our system and thinking that was one of the funniest, coolest things I’d seen since moving to Utah. I was, therefore, more than excited to try it out for myself.

The Miners Day volunteers were instantly recognizable in the crowd, with many of them wearing shirts saying “I’ve got balls” to let you know you were, for sure, in the right place. From there, I scanned a QR code, entered my name and email address, double clicked my phone’s lock button to use Apple Pay and, voila, I had a golf ball. The whole process couldn’t have taken more than five seconds.

We hung around for a bit, ran into The Park Record’s chief photographer, Michael Ritucci, for a quick chat and walked around Main Street until it was time for the Running of the Balls. 

Unfortunately, I still don’t know if I won because I forgot my ball’s number and the winning names haven’t been posted online as of Monday afternoon, but I still have hope that my little guy was a top 10 finisher.

After the event, which was exactly what I’d dreamed it would be, I ducked into the No Name Saloon for some water, a snack and to avoid the heat for a few minutes before taking my place on the side of the road for the parade at 11 a.m.

Being a reporter, I also took the opportunity to talk to folks who were waiting for the main event. Everyone was incredibly friendly, and I was surprised by the number of out-of-town visitors in attendance, most of whom had attended more Miners Day celebrations than I would have expected.

Kaylea and Jeff Schultz, who were visiting from Dallas, Texas, told me it was their second Miners Day, and they were especially grateful for the weather because it had been raining when they came two years ago.

Meanwhile, Carrie Lester from San Diego said it was her fourth year attending Miners Day with her husband, Scott. This year was a little different, though, for two key reasons. First, the family is planning to move to Park City as soon as possible, hopefully making this trip their last visit as out-of-towners. And second, their 2-year-old son, Charlie, is obsessed with golf balls, which makes the Running of the Balls a dream vacation destination.

For what it’s worth, I can personally attest to Charlie’s fascination with golf balls. I kept glancing at him while the balls were bouncing down Main Street, and I have never seen a 2-year-old stare at something so intently in my life. It was awesome.

The parade was great, too, and I loved seeing some familiar faces in the lineup. It was fun to cheer for all the nonprofits, and (full disclosure: I am a former band kid) I learned about the Wasatch Back Marching Band, a joint venture between kids in the Park City School District and South Summit School District, which I thought did a phenomenal job.

Post-parade, I made the journey down Main Street to City Park, ready to figure out what exactly a “mining competition” is. As it turns out, it’s awesome.

I still don’t really understand how the drill works, although I put together that hydraulics, water and being super heavy seem to be the most important factors when it comes to punching through hard rock. Even if I’m wrong, watching guys pick up the drill, slam it against the stone and shove as hard as possible was thrilling.

I enjoyed the mucking competition as well, but my favorite memory of the afternoon was sending videos of the two events to my mom in East Tennessee. She responded, “What in the world?!?!” and subsequently received an explanation of Park City’s mining history. My mom said the weather looked nice and it seemed like everyone was having a nice day, and I think they were.

With all the events of the day finished, I trekked one full minute to the bus stop and was back to my car in less than an hour. All in all, I think it was the best first Miners Day I could have asked for.

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The post In Focus: Scenes from Miners Day 2024 appeared first on Park Record.

Park City celebrated their mining heritage Monday, Sept. 4, 2017, with a 5K run, the annual running of the balls, parade, BBQ in the park and more. (Tanzi Propst/Park Record)

Link to full gallery here: https://parkrecordphoto.smugmug.com/PHOTOS-Miners-Day/

The post PHOTOS: Miner’s Day appeared first on Park Record.

Skaters gathered at the skate park in city park during the Miners Day festivities for a skating competition. Competitors needed to enter in order to compete and had a chance to show off their best tricks with prizes awarded at the end. (Photos by Tanzi Propst/Park Record)

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Locals and visitors gathered at Main Street and City Park for the annual Miners Day celebration Monday, Sept. 5, 2016. The day featured a 5k run, the world famous running of the balls, the Miners Day parade, a mucking and drilling competition, a skate competition as well as carnival fun for kids and live music. (Photos by Tanzi Propst/Park Record)

The post PHOTOS: Miners Day appeared first on Park Record.

In this week’s collection of portraits from For The Record, we asked attendees at the Friends of Ski Mountain Mining History Membership Party why Park City’s mining legacy is still important to them. (Photos by Tanzi Propst/Park Record)

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