The International - A Look Back
T
he first International Championship
Show was held in 1979 at the Old
Fort Park in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
The show was the creation of the
newly formed Walking Horse Owners
Association (WHOA).
The founders of WHOA realized
that for any organization to succeed
it not only needed a purpose, but also
needed to sponsor activities in order to
demonstrate and support that purpose,
and so The International Championship
was conceived.
The support for that first show was
very encouraging. Most of the top show
horses in the industry participated that
first year.
Over the next few years participation
grew in this prestigious event. Year after
year, winners of the International went
10 • Walking On
on to win consistently at the Celebration,
where ‘’the best meet the best ‘’.
The men & women who started the
International
Championship
Show
poured thousands of dollars of their
personal funds in to the endeavor, and
many great horses from throughout the
nation helped to give this new show an
impressive start. In a short time it was
recognized as one of the most prestigious
shows in this industry, second only to
the Tennessee Walking Horse National
Celebration.
Pleasure horses, have always played
an important role in the life of the
International Walking Horse Show.
The International is proud to have been
instrumental in the development of
the Pleasure Horse Division and the
popularity it enjoys today. Exhibitors
from throughout the nation recognize
the International as the leading
Championship Show for the Pleasure
Tennessee Walking Horse.
The change in the physical location of
the International over the years has some
real significance. From its beginning in
1979 at Old Fort Park in Murfreesboro,
Tennessee, the show moved to the
Livestock Center of Middle Tennessee
State University in 1988 where it enjoyed a
large indoor facility for many years. In the
early 1990’s MTSU was awarded, through
the estate of John C. and Mary Miller of
Lewisburg, Tennessee and Anchorage,
Alaska, to receive a gift of twenty million
plus dollars for the construction of a
horse facility in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
The Millers were noted organizers and
supporters of the Walking Horse Owners’