Our third entry for Cowboy & Cowgirl Life – The Code comes to us in two parts about famous Cowgirl Prairie Rose Henderson. (or was it cowgirls?) Written by Shirley Morris – Shirley Morris is a writer/filmmaker and author of Oh You Cowgirl! The True Story of Unsung Hero’s of the West.

THE PONY EXPRESSION is proud to bring you a two part TRUE story of Prairie Rose Henderson – a story full of the Western Code of Life.

So here we go – Part l

THE STORY OF ROSA ANNA GALE
by Shirley Morris

A Rose Is A Rose, Is A Rose …

February, 1933. Snow was beginning to fall fast as Sheriff James Thompson drove up into the Green Mountains of Wyoming. Temperatures had been dropping and he wanted to get this business done before the mountain roads became impassible. The heavily rutted dirt road was now coated with snow as he made his way toward the ranch house. Stopping under the big Pine, he stepped down on the floor break and turned the motor off. Thompson opened the car door to a bone chilling wind and pelting snow to his forehead. Quickly placing his hat upon his head, he stood up and pulled the heavy woolen collar high on his neck, adjusting his belt and holster,  checking to make sure the cold, metal cuffs were in place on his belt.With wide, heavy stride, he stepped up to the wooden porch and knocked hard on the front door. Readying himself for whatever should come next, he cocked his head to the side and listened to the sounds of footsteps coming toward him from within the small house. Slowly, the door opened revealing the darkness of the room. A woman’s voice inquired softly from the other side of the door, “Sheriff?” “I need to speak with your husband, ma’am.”

Sheriff Thompson spoke kindly and quietly to the woman. Fifty, Fifty five, no more than a spit of an old woman, she carried herself slightly hunched at the shoulders. Thompson recognized her face and deep brown eyes and recalled how they had appeared years ago on a much younger and athletic body .

“She was really somethin’ then,” he thought to himself.As a young girl, Rosa met and fell in love with A.C. Clayton a young, good looking cowboy raised on the Kansas plains. A.C brought Rose to Wyoming from her home in Bristol, Ohio. The two of them married and were happy for a time. They had two children, May and Henry. Competing in the annual Frontier Days events was a family affair. A. C. won the cowboy’s saddle bronc event a couple of times. May and Henry both won their events. But Rosey was the real star. She entered the 1904 Cowgirls Relay Race with three borrowed horses and won in a thunderous blaze of glory narrowly beating out Joella Irwin. Two years later she participated in the very first official Cowgirls Saddle Bronc Event and took home the winners Gold Cup for her efforts.

Hailed  a local hero for a time and known throughout the area as “Prairie Rose” Clayton, she had been among the first of many local girls who competed in the Frontier Days celebration. As a young woman, Rosey was a strong willed, adventurous spirit and some swear they can remember the time she demanded a ride on a bucker at the festival in 1901. She questioned the judges and told them “If you can’t produce a rule that forbids me to ride then you must let me have a spot in the contest!” The judges were hard pressed to come up with any ruling that would prohibit girls from riding with the boys in competition. They simply could not understand why in tarnation she would want to! Rosey pressed her point and legend has it  the judges let her ride. But nothing was recorded in the official results. In fact, nothing was ever reported in the local papers and the event was for the most part forgotten.

A.C. and Rose weren’t carnies or shipped in by train from some wild west show in the east. They were hard workin’ local folk, come to town for some fun, escaping from the day to day sameness of the ranch, just showin’ how they do it on the ranch, just showin’ how they do it real. Rose Clayton poses with the three borrowed horses she rode and won the 1906 Cowgirl Relay at Cheyenne Frontier Days.

Photo courtesy Marge Earlywine, Mabel Strickland Cowgirl Museum.

Somewhere along the line, the marriage unraveled and the two very unhappy participants had different versions of a failed and hard marriage. One version may be just as true and no truer than the other but the sad reality was simple; Rose became a divorced mother of two. She was left on her own and it was her duty and sole responsibility to support herself and her children. As any mamma bear would do, she resigned herself to go wherever and do whatever needed to be done to feed and clothe her children. Someone told  her about a job in Utah for a cook in a mining camp and without any further thought, she and the children were packed and on their way to a new future. It isn’t known how long she stayed but eventually, she found herself in California where  son Henry eventually became a plumber in Los Angeles. It was in California that Henry would find his wife, Anna Robbins from Ohio and Rosa would find and marry Charley. Life always seemed to find it’s way.

Sheriff Thompson found himself smiling, recalling those early days of the famed Frontier Days celebration. He wondered how she ever ended up with the likes of Charlie Coleman, a man who was no stranger to trouble or the inside of a jail cell.Thompson rushed quickly back into the present moment as Charley came to the door and stood behind Rose. Coleman had become a familiar figure in town. He had been trying without much luck or skill to make something of that small piece of dirt he and Rose had bought a couple years ago but it just wasn’t meant to be. Money ran out and he butchered another man’s property. Now he had to pay the price.

Thompson opened the screen door and took Coleman by the arm leading him away from any sanctuary the man may have found inside his home. “Charley, you’re under arrest for cattle rustling and butchering.” He glanced back into the doorway of the house toward Rose, now visibly shaken, tears rolling slowly down her cheeks. Not really surprised, she silently accepted her husband’s fate. She watched as the the cold cuffs clicked shut on her husbands’ wrists. Thompson led him down the steps, across the snow and into the backseat of the car.  Without protest, Colman adjusted his body and lowered his head shamefully offering a barely audible  explanation, “We were hungry, sheriff.”

Thompson glanced back at the woman standing on the porch, wrenching a dish towel between her shaking hands. Knowing there was nothing more he could do for her, he focused his eyes squarely on the road ahead and drove away.

Rose stood on the front porch crying as the car slid down the driveway and out of sight. She had been the one to talk Charley into trying his hand at ranching and move with her, back home to Wyoming. It hadn’t worked out well. Charley was not above expressing his displeasure with his fists and had let Rose know many times how unhappy he had become in Wyoming.

Looking through her tears Rose allowed thoughts of freedom to enter her mind, in maybe a small way. She wondered how she could escape her husband’s wrath if she somehow rekindled her courageous spirit and left this place. Her mind raced forward to a safe place with her son in California. Just as quickly as her spirit soared out of Wyoming, fear and guilt would bring it back and once again she would find comfort and familiarity in finding yet another reason to stay with the man. It simply never occurred  to her that Charley was who he was and there was nothing she could have done to change him. Snow was falling heavy in a frenzied, sideways journey, rushing across the pasture and sticking to anything in its path. Mrs. Coleman knew there was little, precious time to bring her pony to safety and out she headed toward the barn for a halter. Grabbing the halter, she held it close to her body and disappeared into the cold, blinding whiteness.

Once back at the office, Sheriff  Thompson’s thoughts returned anxiously to the woman up on Green Mountain. His deputy had just returned to the office and was warming his hands above the fired up wood stove. “I had to bring Charley Coleman off the mountain today but his wife is up there all alone. Would you pick up some supplies and take ‘em on up to her? I’m worried about her bein’ there all by herself. The snow’s getting’ real bad and she’s gettin’ up there in years. Knowing the nearest supply store was several miles away from the folks who lived on the mountain the young deputy didn’t hesitate. He swaggered over to the coat rack by the door, grabbed his heavy green jacket, still wet and soggy, and headed back out into the storm.

The deputy loaded the car with several boxes of  food and supplies and drove back up the mountain to deliver the package to Rose Coleman. “Oh, man it’s a comin’ down now.”  He took his hand and wiped the wet foggy mist away from the windshield. Slipping up the driveway and skidding to a halt, he was surprised to find the house empty with no sign of the woman anywhere, inside or out. He cupped his hands around his mouth and called loudly, “Rose! Mrs. Coleman!” Squinting, he  attempted to focus through any small space in between the barrage of blinding white flakes. He looked desperately for the woman loosing hope with each passing moment. Finally, he acquiesced to the cruelty and power of the storm.

The ride back to the office was devastatingly slow. Fearing the worst, he dreaded facing the sheriff with the bad news. Thompson’s words boomed off the walls and echoed throughout the office as he heard his deputy’s report. “Damn it! I knew I shouldn’t have left her up there.” The next day Thompson and two additional men returned to the ramshackle ranch to look, once again for Rose Coleman. Time and again he would make the trek back up to the harsh, loneliness of the mountain country, now blanketed with deep snow, hoping in vain to find some trace of her. Sadly, he would concede; Rose Coleman was forever lost somewhere on Green Mountain to the winter storms in the season of 1933. Charles Coleman pleaded guilty to butchering cattle and spent more than one year in the state prison.

Newspapers reported the missing woman as Prairie Rose Henderson. They reported  the world famous rodeo cowgirl was lost in a snowstorm and died in the Wyoming Mountains. They recounted her marriage to Charles Coleman and the report was carried by many national newspapers despite the protest by Henry Clayton, Rose Coleman’s son. In fact, the local paper even ran a story quoting Henry as saying, “It was not Prairie Rose Henderson,” but his mother, Rose Clayton-Coleman who died in that snowstorm. He went on to say “I’m sure the real Prairie Rose Henderson is quite surprised to be reading her own obituary. She is living in Burbank, California.” Still no one listened and the story of the death of the famous Prairie Rose Henderson persisted and gathered momentum.

Fog Horn Clancy, the famous promoter and rodeo announcer picked up the story and wrote about it in his column in Hoofs and Horns. Oddly, no report or story can be found of the many friends or colleagues of Prairie Rose Henderson who were to offer condolences at a funeral or graveside service. Nor could any words of remembrance be found in any of the many papers that had covered her every move and action at the various shows and rodeo’s she performed in. Close friends Mabel Strickland, Florence Hughes, Bonnie Gray and  Lorena Trickey said nothing and nothing was ever reported about any grieving family members. There was never any kind of memorial or funeral service for the great Prairie Rose Henderson. No official obituary. No death certificate. No coroners report.  Not for the great Prairie Rose Henderson. A woman died in a terrible blizzard in 1933 and Prairie Rose Henderson ceased to exist.Seven years later a fire broke out in the Green Mountains on July 17, 1939.

Charles Coleman was out of prison, putting his life back together and was one of the firefighters battling the blaze that day when a sheepherder named Martinez, also battling the flames ran toward him. “Coleman! Come over here quick, come now!” Charley could see the man was peering at something heaped beside a rock and he ran fast down the hill, kicking the hot, dry smoky dust into his eyes and sucking it deep into his lungs with every open mouthed breath he took. The sheepherder looked up and into Charlie’s eye’s as he rushed up, just within two feet of a small bit of half buried, crumpled blue material. Bones, barely recognizable as human could be seen within the torn trousers. His soul aching with the chilling certainty of what he was looking at, Charley couldn’t take his eyes from the gruesome discovery. It was all that remained of Rosa Gale, daughter of Ezra Gale from Bristol, Ohio. A.C. Clayton’s first love, Henry and May’s mother and his wife. Charley looked over, just to the right of the body and recognized the leather remnants of what was a pony halter. It was the one Rose had grabbed from the barn that stormy morning seven years ago.

“Ah, no. Oh, my Rosey.”  It was more guilt than sorrow that brought Charley to his knees as he wept beside her body.

The bodily remains were formally identified as Anna Rosa Gale-Clayton-Coleman by Rose’s son, Henry and her brother, Elmer Gale in the official coroners report. Cause of death was listed as “exposure to the elements. ”Unbelievably, amidst Henry’s very vocal protests, as well as the coroners report, newspapers across the country continued to report the death of Prairie Rose Henderson. Bold headlines screamed, “Body Of Famous Rodeo Star Found.” Finally, the world was convinced with absolute certainty the fate of  Prairie Rose Henderson and Henry Clayton returned home to California to grieve his mother.

Rumors spread that the skeletal remains of Prairie Rose Henderson were identified by a championship belt buckle she had won was still shackled to her body. Some say she had conquered her fear of storms and after her husband was arrested went out to look for her favorite pony to bring him to shelter. People would agree, “Yes, that does sound like the Prairie Rose. She did love those horses.”

Once away from the house, she became disoriented and snow blind and perished for eternity. It is curious that the famed rodeo cowgirl, Prairie Rose Henderson had many friends but not one came forth, as friends do in these times, to remember her and maybe even shed a few tears as they said goodbye.

No one came forward to claim the bones of Prairie Rose Henderson, World Champion Cowgirl and Saddle Bronco Rider, the Sweetheart of the Rodeo. Rosey Clayton’s tragedy was forgotten in the apathy of time just as completely as if it had never happened, there on Green Mountain.

The legend of Prairie Rose Henderson lived on in newspapers, stories, books, all continuing throughout the years to report the hard end of the great cowgirl up on Green Mountain, in a Wyoming snow storm.

Coast to coast news of her death shocked the fans who had watched her ride the pitching bronc’s, winning countless championships, dressed in her own remarkable creations of Mink, Maribou, ribbons, sequins, velvet and beads, always wearing her famously large Sombrero.

Knowing the true identity of the ill fated woman who died on Green Mountain, Rose Clayton-Coleman offers little comfort for, if it wasn’t Prairie Rose Henderson who died in that snow storm, what did happen to her? Why did she simply vanish, never to be seen or heard from again?  If she didn’t die in that snowstorm, what did happen to Prairie Rose Henderson? Why did she leave her great legacy behind in the west? – Shirley Morris

Stay tuned for Part ll – Prairie Rose Henderson – The Secret

Shirley Morris is a writer/filmmaker currently in production for the film, “Oh, You Cowgirl!” In 2007 her research took a 180º turn when the path led her to the true identity and story about the famed cowgirl of the early 20th century, Prairie Rose Henderson. The rodeo cowgirl known for her flamboyant, sometimes outrageous costumes and unstable, unpredictable personality, may have had a good reason for being unpredictable, there were more than three women who made up the persona and legend of Prairie Rose Henderson.

The best known and most photographed of the Prairie Rose characters turns out to be a true unsung hero of the west. An entire generation of cowgirls owe their career and ability to continue riding rough stock well into the mid 20th century to this woman who was matriarch of a family known as a “Rodeo Dynasty”.

Because of her research into the Prairie Rose Henderson Legend, “Oh, You Cowgirl!” will feature this very special woman in the hour long documentary to premier early this summer.

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The second of our Cowboy & Cowgirl code series posts: please welcome guest blogger John Brand of Buckaroo Leather.

THE COWBOY SOCIAL WORLD

Over time, the cowboys of the American West developed a personal culture of their own, a blend of frontier and Victorian values that even retained vestiges of chivalry. Such hazardous work in isolated conditions also bred a tradition of self-dependence and individualism, with great value put on personal honesty, exemplified in songs and poetry. Over the years many of us have developed a romance with old west songs, poetry, stories and movies…

I have many fond memories of my grandfather Del, and father telling me family history and stories while taking me fishing and hunting. And not realizing until later in life when it was time to teach my children the values of the code of the west and the cowboy way, how much I had learned from my fore fathers. Important things like how to treat animals, respect guns and their use, and other people. Guns have become a big social issue because it is easy to blame the gun and not the core reason of the person using it and their upbringing…

My grandfathers family the Bradford’s homesteaded in Hemet, California in 1903 in a tent raising cattle and dry farming crops relying on mother nature.

After time and hard work they were able to afford to build a shack and my grandfather was born in 1912.

He had 2 sisters and 2 brothers who all learned family values while doing their many daily chores.

(Plowing in Hemet)

As now in tough economic and social times it becomes more apparent how society would benefit from parents and kids of our future taking to heart the values of the code of the west and the cowboy way to the core of their everyday lives. Here is one of my favorite hero’s-

HOPALONG CASSIDY’S CREED FOR AMERICAN BOYS AND GIRLS-

1. The highest badge of honor a person can wear is honesty. Be truthful at all times.
2. Your parents are the best friends you have. Listen to them and obey their instructions.
3. If you want to be respected, you must respect others. Show good manners in every way.
4. Only through hard work and study can you succeed. Don’t be lazy.
5. Your good deeds always come to light. So don’t boast or be a show-off.
6. If you waste time or money today, you will regret it tomorrow. Practice thrift in all ways.
7. Many animals are good and loyal companions. Be friendly and kind to them.
8. A strong, healthy body is a precious gift. Be neat and clean.
9. Our country’s laws are made for your protection. Observe them carefully.
10. Children in many foreign lands are less fortunate than you. Be glad and proud you are an American.

DOES A CODE OF THE WEST STILL EXIST?
Self reliance continues to be a Western trait. For the first time since the Civil War, the federal bureaucracy is being seriously challenged. Washington is being asked to prove why it is a more effective trustee of Western lands and their resources than the locals who live, work, and play on those lands. I think welfare especially rankles Westerners because of its implied insult — that men and women are incapable of earning a living on their own, or are unwilling to help those temporarily down on their luck to get back on their feet. In the West I believe there remains a willingness to trust a person rather than trust fine print. Unquestionably, the Westerner’s symbiotic relationship with the land has never been lost. The value placed on the region’s traditional industries, like ranching, has never diminished, even among many urban Westerners. The West was as much a state of mind as it was a historical phenomenon. And the Code? Like I said, it’s unwritten, how are you to prove it still exists?

Quote by: William H. Forbis. The Old West: The Cowboys Time-Life Books. 1973.

I heard about a lot of this after the 911 attacks…

BEING NEIGHBORLY

The story is told of an elderly couple approaching the night clerk in one of Philadelphia ’s older hotels. The man indicated that he and his wife had been looking all over town for a room, but because of a convention, none was to be had.

The night clerk had pity on the couple and, although there was no vacancy in his hotel, offered them his room for the night.

The next morning while the elderly couple was eating breakfast, they asked to see the night clerk. When the clerk arrived, the gentleman astonished him by asking, “How would you like for me to build a big, beautiful, luxurious hotel in the city of New York and make you the general manager?” Astounded, the clerk simply responded, “Wonderful!”

The elderly man introduced himself as John Jacob Astor. The Waldorf-Astoria was built, and the night clerk became its first manager.

Be a good friend and neighbor. It can be a reward to everyone.

At Buckaroo Leather American Made is not just a sales slogan, standing tall behind our Buckaroo logo is honesty, hard work, dedication, sacrifice and integrity. In our journey of the last 30 years we have met many amazing artists, business horseman and women , craftsmen and customers who still live, as us by American Made. Our family has been dedicated for 30 years in serving the Western Horseman the safest most durable Quality
American made leather horse tack.

Thank You, John Brand – BuckarooJohn
Cell #530-545-0139
1-800-873-0781 Fax #888-652-6621

Twitter: @buckaroojohn

www.buckarooleather.com -website
www.buckarooleather.info -blog
www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/buckaroojohn -histories

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Great Grandson tells how One Bull was blamed by Lakota people for the demise of Sitting Bull and the Lakota people.

Popularity: 20% [?]

Something from me…  where the wild horse issues are concerned the answer is not slaughter.  Not mass slaughter for certain. Ethical behavior is the answer.  Not every horse will live out his life as in every other species including mankind, someone will parish.  Mass murder of a species is not the answer to government issues, wild life issues, grazing and rancher issues, pipeline for a greener America issues.  Creating a sustainable environment that addresses those issues and the habitats of wild horses is the answer.  When we elected our President  and Representatives and Senators to lead America toward a greener world, we did not elect him or them to murder our horses to do it.

The “Government” does not own those horses.  We “THE PEOPLE” of America do not own those horses, “MOTHER EARTH” owns them.  They are her children.  Stop killing the children!

AHO

“WILD HORSES” – by: Mike “Hawk” Huston (excerpt from Bulls and Beavers)

Captain Smith slows his tired gelding to a stop. Every man and horse in his regiment is either tired or nearly broken. For the life of him, he cannot figure how the savages and their wild horses can consistently outrun and outmaneuver his highly trained and conditioned men and military stock. For ten years, he has chased, tracked, and pursued the savages, and never once has he caught a lone warrior… even on open ground. Maybe instead of shooting the Indian ponies at every opportunity the army should consider commissioning the wild stock and using them for troop movement. Never! He and his regiment would be the laughing stock of the western army…

A modern victim of wild horse slaughter as seen “Straight From The Horses Heart:

Mike Hawk Huston continues…

Today, the wild mustang is still wild and free upon the western plains and mountains; but who can say for how much longer. Their habitat is under attack by those wishing to use the land to graze cattle, sheep, as well as those hoping to open the wild horse habitat for oil exploration. Often times the majestic wild mustang is viewed as vermin by those wishing to profit from their home range. I do not begrudge the rancher for needing graze for their cattle, nor the oilfields for drilling American oil. The media would like everyone to believe that the horses are in need of a drastic decrease because of overpopulation. The truth is, their home range is being taken away so quickly and loss of food sources on crucial winter range to overgrazing is causing the wild mustang to have to fight for survival within their own designated habitat…

(The entire story can be found at Bulls and Beavers)

Livelihoods at stake…

Toas Art School – Wild Horse Photography

Now for some more FANTASTIC (these are must see) images of wild horses by another Photographer check out the link Naturescapes – Wild Mustangs of the Rockies

Popularity: 31% [?]

Yeah yeah I know I said I was going to cut the links to all the posts to my blog  except for the  Thankful Thursdays etc.  But after asking a few people their opinion, I have decided to leave them.  Plus when I check out the visitors on my stats page most are coming to view those very pages. Ones like Sunday Historathon – 1800′s, maybe I should continue it?, and create a Saddle series, and continue the Cowboy life.  I have a piece from someone I met on Twitter that I have not posted yet for the Cowboy Life series.  It’s a good one too.  There is a gal who may start posting her Thankful Thursdays on THE PONY EXPRESSION too.

I like how this blog reflects my life history both sad and happy, but also has interesting things outside of me for folks to read.

Lesson learned there are no final decisions.

Popularity: 62% [?]

RODEO GALS

I thought that looking at women in rodeos during the 1800′s would be a fun research project.  What I discovered was that rodeos as we know them didn’t really exist until around the early 1900′s. Rodeo type events started springing up around the 1880′s or so and became popular thanks to showman like CB Irwin and the Irwin Brothers Wild West Show and Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show where women would perform along side of men.  Women performed daring tricks, bull dogged and rode saddle broncs. Some showed off their fancy fire arm tricks and marks”man”ship as well.  Prior to that small events would be held on ranches where the sponsoring ranch’s hands would pit their abilities against neighboring ranch hands for a day of de-stressing.  Many women participated in these ranch rodeos riding bulls, roping, bull dogging, racing etc.  It seems that up until the 1900′s women did pretty much everything that men did in the early ranch rodeo events.

Before we go too far into rodeos and women I like to share this bit of information about cowboys from Cowboy Way.

The Term “Cowboy”

Up until the late 1800′s, the term “cowboy” was a rotten thing to call someone. During the American Revolution a “cowboy” (or “cow boy” or “cow-boy”) was a Loyalist who stole Patriot cows, often luring the cows into the brush to shoot them. As the new country of America expanded to the west the word “cowboy,” with a growing list of negative connotations, went along with it.

According to authors Joseph G. Rosa and Robin May in their book “Buffalo Bill and His Wild West, A Pictorial Biography” it was Buffalo Bill Cody who rehabilitated the word in the minds of the American public. In Buffalo Bill’s famous Wild West shows a “cowboy” was a man of bravery and honesty, often cast in roles during daring reenactments of wild west adventures as that of a hero. Flamboyantly dressed and displaying extraordinary riding and marksmanship skills, the cowboys of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West soon etched a new, much more positive meaning of the word “cowboy” into the minds of Americans.

The truth about women’s participation in rodeos was neatly tweaked to depict women as gentile rather than rugged tough rough abouts smoking a corn cob pipe while sporting a lariat or mending a fence.  More women than you may expect were of the stronger, capable and competitive nature having emerged out of the 1800′s experience and this showed up in many ranch events across the west.  From Cowgirl Smarts I found this.

Historians would have you believe that women didn’t rope steers or ride broncs until the 1900s, when in fact many women were competing informally against neighbors in local ranch rodeos in the 1800s. Records indicate that by 1887 Buffalo Bill was adding women to his Wild West shows as fast as he could scout the female talent. It seems the public had an appetite for feminine women performing daring western stunts.

From the Wild West shows, dozens of talented cowgirls went into professional rodeo and were frequently allowed to compete against men. Cowgirls excelled at all rodeo events until the late 1940s, when women’s events were cut in order to increase the purse for men.

Next I visited the Cowgirl Hall of Fame and to my disappointment I found nearly all the Honoraries had actually “rodeod” in the early 1900′s  although many were born in the 1800′s. I’m supposing that since rodeo’s were not officially organized until around 1904-06  that historians begin their research there.  I find this very sad as the many women that came before forming the foundation to the rodeo event have been forgotten in time.  The Cowgirl Hall of Fame is still a fascinating place to visit.  Discovered there are women who taught school, managed boarding houses, wrote books and other interesting life’s work while as a pastime and for some to win purses waged themselves against a steer, or a saddle bronc or death defying tricks aboard lightening fast horses upon thundering hooves. What was not documented it seems was the early pioneer women who ranched, broke out stock, and participated along side men in the ranch rodeo events and festivities.
One woman, Ollie Osborn was born into ranch life, performed in Wild West Shows and later rode broncs in the early rodeos.  I found Ollie by going to a source that I met on Twitter.  Shirley Morris of  The Lone Cowgirl blog is writing a book called “Oh You Cowgirl!”  We ended up speaking on the phone and to my delight she is a wealth of information on cowgirl life during the early years. Here Shirley speaks some about her projects…

“My project is a book, about halfway completed at this point, “Oh, You Cowgirl!” and an hour long documentary by the same name. At the present time, I’m working on a shorter version about the cowgirls who were important to the early Pendleton Round Up. Mabel Strickland, Ollie Osborn, Bonnie McCarroll, Fox Hastings, Prairie Rose Henderson, Lorena Trickey just to name a few. The shorter version will be premiered at the Pendleton Hall of Fame to honor the cowgirls of Pendleton.”

Shirley sent the following information about Ollie Osborn.

Ollie Osborn
1896 – 1989

After she had long since retired from the fast-paced, wild life of a rodeo and wild west show cowgirl, Ollie Osborn was asked if she thought  she could have beat the men in the saddle bronc contests, given the opportunity to ride by the same rules and for the same prizes. Ollie said,

“Well, I’m not a gonna say to that. I mighta some and some I mighta not but I think I’d hold my own with the best of ‘em.”

Ollie Osborn was born a ranchers daughter, in Union, Oregon in 1896. It was as a child on the ranch, she learned the skills of riding, bulldogging and roping she would later use to perform and compete as the first woman ever to attain the status of professional rodeo cowgirl and compete in rodeo’s across the country. Ollie performed or competed in wild west shows and rodeo from 1913 through 1932. Like many of the women who made the adjustment of rancher to rodeo performer, Ollie rode slick, without tying her stirrups (hobbled). Retiring from that life she returned to her ranch home in Union, Or. where she ranched several more years until poor health forced her retirement.

In 1982 she was inducted into the Cowgirl Hall of Fame in Herford, TX and will be honored this year as one of six cowgirls in a permanent cowgirl display in the Hall of Fame at Pendleton, OR.

Shirley tells us that this photo of Ollie Osborn “was taken in 1913 when she was perfoming with Irwin Bros. Wild West and Frontier Days Show. Ollie was one of the star performers with the show along with Prairie Rose, Florence La Due, Lone Star May, Fox Hastings and the Irwin girls, Pauline, Joella and Francis.”

Look at her (Ollie)!!!  She’s a whisp of a thing!!

Thank you Shirley Morris for your contribution to today’s Sunday Historathon – 1800′s post.

And that folks concludes today’s Sunday Historathon – 1800′s “Rodeo Gals”.  Amazing Cowgirls!   YEEE HAW!

Popularity: 89% [?]

Draft Horses and Oxen

I am amazed on how many visitors arrive here from searches made on 1800′s information. Women and saddles being among the top search tags.  Well today we broaden our 1800′s Historathon to include agriculture. I began today’s Sunday Historathon – 1800′s  looking for early farming methods in the Colorado area using horses.  I know they exist, however I was unable to satisfy what I was looking for so finally gave up that endeavor to broadening my search to the continental United States.  It appears from what I have read that horses really were not all that popular in the early 1800′s and that the majority of importations of draft breeds for farming came along in the mid to late 1800′s and into the early 1900′s as a transistion from oxen to horses emerged.   More on the introduction of draft breeds to the united states for the use of agriculture in the following links. Draft Horse Breeds, Iowa Pathways, and American Heartland. These site have some good basic information and I am certain that more detailed sites are out there some where regarding the practices used with these animals so I’ll have to dig a bit further later on. I did however find this photo. I had no idea that many horses would be used at one time!

This photo was found at Aigner Graphics with no credits or identifying information. I am thinking this photo was taken in the early 1900′s after the advent of agriculture machinery. 

Amazing!!  Could you imagine controlling that many horses?  The hours it must have taken just to hitch them all up? I would say from a horses trainers point of view that this team of horses had to be highly prized.  The training involved and conditioning involved to get a horse ready for work is astronomical with a two horse team.  Just boggles my mind!  This photo had me off looking for multi-teamed harnesses. I wanted to see one of these contraptions up close and personal and again my attempts were foiled.

Okay I was not getting very far with 1800′s agriculture and horses  and I kept running into notations that oxen were used in the 1700′s and early 1800′s. So I switched gears and off I went searching for oxen, coming across the photo below which I found at  Western Sierra Railroad.

Imagine what it takes to train Oxen and then what it might be like to command a team like this one.

 Then at Wikipedia.org I found this…

Oxen (singular ox) are large and heavyset breeds of Bos taurus cattle trained as draft animals. Often they are adult, castrated males. Usually an ox is over four years old due to the need for training and to allow it to grow to full size. Oxen are used for plowing, transport, hauling cargo, grain-grinding by trampling or by powering machines, irrigation by powering pumps, and wagon drawing. Oxen were commonly used to skid logs in forests, and sometimes still are, in low-impact select-cut logging. Oxen are most often used in teams of two, paired, for light work such as carting. In the past, teams might have been larger, with some teams exceeding twenty animals when used for logging.

An ox is nothing more than a mature bovine with an “education.” The education consists of the animal’s learning to respond appropriately to the teamster‘s (ox driver’s) signals. These signals are given by verbal commands or by noise (whip cracks) and many teamsters were known for their voices and language. In North America, the commands are (1) get up, (2) whoa, (3) back up, (4) gee (turn right) and (5) haw (turn left). Oxen must be painstakingly trained from a young age. Their teamster must provide as many as a dozen yokes of different sizes as the animals grow. A wooden yoke is fastened about the neck of each pair so that the force of draft is distributed across their shoulders. From calves, oxen are chosen with horns since the horns hold the yoke in place when the oxen lower their heads, back up, or slow down (particularly with a wheeled vehicle going downhill). Yoked oxen cannot slow a load like harnessed horses can; the load has to be controlled downhill by other means. The gait of the ox is often important to ox trainers, since the speed the animal walks should roughly match the gait of the ox driver who must work with it.

U.S. ox trainers favored larger breeds for their ability to do more work and for their intelligence. Because they are larger animals, the typical ox is the male of a breed, rather than the smaller female. Females are potentially more useful producing calves and milk.

Oxen can pull harder and longer than horses, particularly on obstinate or almost un-movable loads. This is one of the reasons that teams drag logs from forests long after horses had taken over most other draft uses in Europe and North America. Though not as fast as horses, they are less prone to injury because they are more sure-footed and do not try to jerk the load.

An “ox” is not a unique breed of bovine, nor have any “blue” oxen lived outside the folk tales surrounding Paul Bunyan, the mythical American logger. A possible exception and antecedent to this legend is the Belgian Blue breed which is known primarily for its unusual musculature and at times exhibits unusual white/blue, blue roan, or blue coloration. The unusual musculature of the breed is believed to be due to a natural mutation of the gene that codes for the protein Myostatin, which is responsible for normal muscle atrophy.

Many oxen are used worldwide, especially in developing countries.

Ox is also used for various cattle products, irrespective of age, sex or training of the beast – for example, ox-blood, ox-liver, ox-kidney, ox-heart, ox-hide.

It appears that oxen were the primary mode of agriculture during the early 1800′s and lost their popularity to horses about 1840 due to horses being able to farm larger plots of ground faster producing more yields for the growing dependency on American farmers. My curiosity though was not quite satisfied  I still had those harnesses on my mind and upon trying to see in the photo above the yokes that were used my curiosity moved to getting a better look at yokes and Wallah!!!  I found the mother load!

Check out this site: Conner Prairie Interactive Histpric Park  here you may participate in programs that include the Amazing Race Through Time and Historic Baseball…

 White River Base Ball Club & Mystery on the Prairie On Sat & Sun at 1pm, the farmers will challenge the hometown team at the Zimmerman farm for ”The Great Base Ball Match.” Come ready to participate, the farmers may be looking for players!

The Conner Prairie Interactive Historic Park  have other programs and opportunities including viewing historical documents as well as the wonderful agriculture implement’s like this oxen yoke you see below below.

This concludes today’s Sunday Historathon – 1800′s.  Enjoy the journey as you check out the links above to discovery where they may lead you.

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THE SADDLE

The last couple of saddle posts have generated some good questions, so I decided its time for me to produce my Sunday Historathon – 1800′s entry and Arizona Trail Ride research piece on Paisano’s saddle.  I had planned to post it Sunday, however, WordPress thought otherwise.  So it’s up now.  Go ahead and enjoy it.

Popularity: 100% [?]

Oh I bet you guys thought I had forgotten all about the Sunday Historathon!  No-Sir-ee!  Last week  and the one before it got away form me is all. With company one weekend and moving Theory the next I had several things to get caught up on.  Besides I have been kind of obsessed with canteens and just was not finding any gems out there in cyberspace that were offering any meat to chase.  Well today changed all that.  Check out today’s Sunday Historathon – 1800′s entitled Canteens -1800′s. This entry is part of my Arizona Trail Ride collection at left under “Pages”.

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THANKFUL  THURSDAY 

For more thankful Thursdays be sure to visit these sites.

Akal Ranch

Tired Dog Ranch

Enlightened Horsemanship Through Touch

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