Idaho's Statehood Day to be celebrated in Wallace

WALLACE –– The Fourth of July may get all the big attention this week, but in Wallace, the party starts one day earlier when they celebrate Idaho's Statehood Day.  

On July 3, 1890, President Benjamin Harrison signed Idaho into statehood and the rest, as they say, is history.  

Each year, the city of Wallace kicks off their annual Fourth of July festivities the night before, with a mini-festival of sorts that celebrates the birthday of the Gem of the Mountain (more on that nickname later).  

Jim Shields has been organizing the event since its beginning, over two decades ago. He can’t quite remember which milestone it was, but he knew he wanted to celebrate Idaho’s birthday.  

“Everybody celebrates the Fourth of July, which is cool,” Shields said. “But nobody celebrates our Statehood Day.”  

That got him thinking. Wallace is a city that is almost always down for a good party, and what better way to kick off a party than with a parade.  

“Everyone does parades, but we decided that we’d do one with no costs or registration, just show up and get in line,” Shields said. “People loved it, so we decided that we’d keep up with the tradition.”  

Here are just a few fun facts about Idaho, before and after receiving its statehood. 

This year marks 134 years since President Harrison granted Idaho its statehood, making it the 43rd state in the Union.  

Over the years, Idaho has ebbed and flowed in terms of economy and population, however, in recent years both the economy and population have skewed favorably for the state. Idaho is the 14th largest state in terms of land area but is the 13th least populated state. However, according to recent census data, that population is increasing, and Idaho saw a more than 17% jump in population from 2020 to 2023, the second-highest jump among the 50 states.  

Prior to achieving statehood, the Idaho Territory was in turmoil. Washington State, which had received its statehood in 1889, and Nevada were making plays to split Idaho in half, but those efforts were rebuffed by President Grover Cleveland.  

After receiving statehood, Idaho’s capital was moved from Lewiston to Boise, and President Harrison even made a trip to the new capital city where he planted a tree outside of Idaho’s Statehouse.  

The name Idaho was originally believed to be a native word for Gem of the Mountains, but according to many state historians the word was discovered to have been made up, but they had already granted Idaho its statehood.  

Artifacts discovered in caves near Twin Falls showed that Indigenous people have been in Idaho for 14,500 years and were among the oldest artifacts discovered in North America.  

Wallace, Idaho, has been in existence since 1884 when Colonel William R. Wallace built a cabin on a location he called Placer Center, which grew exponentially over the years. But in May 1888, a group of Placer Center residents petitioned the Shoshone County Commissioners, based out of the former county seat of Murray, to change the name to Wallace and formally incorporate the city. Wallace became the county seat of Shoshone County in 1898. 

Idaho is one of 15 states that exist in two different time zones. Everything south of Idaho County is on Mountain Standard Time, while everything from Idaho County and north is on Pacific Standard Time.

The Wallace Statehood Day Parade and Celebration kicks off on Wednesday, July 3, at 5 p.m. with the Parade beginning at 5:30 p.m. 

“Come out, enjoy yourself, and be safe,” Shields said. “Have a good time and celebrate Idaho.”