It All Started with a Garden Party...

According to Pete Andrews, who published the Sumner News Index for many years, the Daffodil Festival really started in the early 1920's with what was called the Steelhead Banquet, sponsored by the Sumner Chamber of Commerce. It always was a springtime event, and the tables for the banquet always were decorated with masses of golden yellow daffodils. Around 1926, participants decided to switch the name from Steelhead to Daffodil Banquet.
Elizabeth Wotton, a young Puyallup matron, was asked to be the queen of the first Daffodil Festival in 1934. She and her "princesses" were toured around Tacoma, Sumner, Orting and Puyallup. That evening, they were presented to Gov. Clarence Marted and the Sumner banquet. Whether this "tour" was a parade is not clear, but the first official Daffodil Parade was held in Puyallup in 1935.
In it's day, the Daffodil Parade was the third-largest floral festival of it's kind. Although it has fallen from this vaulted position, it's still one of the largest in the country, and still is one of the most welcome springtime events in this area.
For more information on the modern day Daffodil Festival, go to their Web site.
And don't forget to check the calendar for when the festival is happening this year!

Main History page | Puyallup History | Sumner History |The Puyallup Indians | The Puyallup Fair | Read more about Ezra Meeker | Read more about William Kincaid |Why Daffodil Valley? | History of the Daffodil Festival | Indian War of 1855
All historical information has been compiled through the hard work and diligence of the Daffodil Valley Times staff. Anyone may copy this information for private or public use provided links are given to Daffodil Valley Times (http://www.daffodilvalleytimes.com) and full credit is given to Daffodil Valley Times. Thank you!