Historic Newspaper Archives

July 11, 1965 featured image

Burro’s Note Shows He’s Only a Jackass

“The burro race drivers are mean and cruel. When we get tired and lay down they pour sand in our ears or tie ropes around our lower jaw to pull us upon our tired feet. Even Indian Joe in Arizona wasn’t this mean; he only hit us with a piece of cactus. These drivers will tell you they are not cruel to us, but they are liars. The guard turn their heads to such cruelties. One driver even had a prod stick with a wire from electric batteries attached to it. But the batteries were too low to shock us. Go see for yourself, Mr. Buie, and tell your readers to help stop this cruelty, and I’ll give you a ride sometime.
July 21, 1965 featured image

Burro Race Queen Contest Under Way

As one of the kickoff events of the “Miss Burro” contest, some of the young contestants from Big Bear and the Pioneertown- Yucca Valley area exchanged visits and ticket-selling sprees over the weekend, it was reported by Samuel A. Moore, Pioneertown activities chairman.
Jackass Mail featured image

Pioneertown Gets New Paper: ‘Jackass Mail’

Take Pioneertown, near Yucca Valley, a very small community, with stores and businesses one can count on one hand. It has its own newspaper; “Jackass Mail.” Type is hand set. The four column five page paper is small but July 1 weekend 500 persons bought every single copy at 15 cents.
Old Miner Event featured image

Plans Made for Old Miner Event

The noon stop of the burrow wranglers will be the Copper Room at the Yucca Valley airport where lunch will be served by the Yucca Valley Elks Club. Lucerne Valley, the first night’s stop, will roll out the red carpet for wranglers and visitors.
July 24, 1965 featured image

Pioneertown’s National Burro Derby Day

AUGUST 5 is the date and the photo shows some of the exciting action that will go with the starting of some 60 to 80 wild burros from Pioneertown’s “Golden Empire Corral” on the long trek from Pioneertown to Big Bear. It is Pioneertown’s first National Burro Derby Days, held in conjunction with Big Bear’s Old Miner Days, an annual event. The name “wild burro” is no misnomer. These burros are captured on the Nevada deserts and are really wild! Early the morning of August 5, the burros will be saddled and leave Pioneertown for Yucca Valley with a lunch stop, then on to Lander and Lucerne Valley for an over night stop, reaching Big Bear the evening of the 7th. The burros will be “housed” and cared for at the Pioneertown Golden Empire Corral from July 31st., to be groomed for the race.