In a town known for its gunfight shows and street brawls, Tombstone will be showcasing its softer side Saturday when the Vigilettes host the town’s annual Rose Festival.
Festivities start Friday evening with the coronation of the Rose Queen — held at the Rose Museum, 118 S. Fourth St. — with four Tombstone High School girls vying for the honor.
“The coronation starts at 6 p.m. and is open to the public,” said Tombstone Vigilette President Linda Dailing. “In addition to the queen, there will be two princesses and for the first time this year, we’re going to have a ‘Spirit of the Tombstone Rose’ as part of the court.”
To qualify, the girls must be Tombstone High School students. They fill out an application, provide their grade point average and write an essay about why they want to represent Tombstone as the town’s rose queen.
“All four girls are amazing candidates and I’m looking forward to the coronation,” Dailing said. “They are going to make great ambassadors for Tombstone.”
The festival’s daylong list of activities on Saturday starts with an 11 a.m. parade, with the lineup at Sixth and Allen streets. Cost to enter the parade is $10.
This year’s celebration marks the 138th blooming of the world’s largest rose bush. The Lady Banksia Rose fills the museum’s patio with a canopy of white blossoms, an area that covers nearly 9,000 square feet. The sprawling branches, which are supported by a massive trellis, bloom for about six weeks in March and April. Tombstone’s annual celebration attracts visitors from around the world.
Planted in 1885 from cuttings sent to Tombstone from Scotland back in the town’s silver mining boom, the rose tree’s trunk is about 12 feet around. The rose tree has been listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s largest rose bush for a number of years.
The Vigilettes is a nonprofit organization of ladies who raise money in support of scholarships for Tombstone Unified School District students, as well as a list of charities.
In keeping with the rose-themed celebration, the majority of Saturday’s parade entries are typically draped in roses.
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