Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration

Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration
The main arena at the TWHNC grounds
Sanctioning bodyWalking Horse Trainers' Association
LocationCelebration Grounds, Shelbyville, Tennessee
HeldAnnually
Length11 days
SponsorsVarious
Inaugurated1939
Breeds shownTennessee Walking Horses
Largest honorWorld Grand Championship
DivisionsAmateur, youth, professional
QualifyingNo
Total purseUS$650,000
Number of entriesTooltip Approximation2,000
AttendanceTooltip Approximation250,000
WebsiteOfficial website Edit this at Wikidata

The Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration (TWHNC), sometimes known as the Celebration, is the largest horse show for the Tennessee Walking Horse breed, and has been held annually in or near Shelbyville, Tennessee since its inception in 1939. The Celebration was conceived by Henry Davis, a horse trainer who along with several other horsemen, felt the Shelbyville area should have a festival or annual event. Although the Celebration was originally held in Wartrace, Tennessee, it moved to Shelbyville, the seat of Bedford County, a few years later. The Celebration spans 11 days and nights in late August and early September annually, and finishes with the crowning of the World Grand Champion Tennessee Walker on the Saturday night before Labor Day. The TWHNC draws an estimated 2,000 horses and 250,000 spectators to Shelbyville each year.