Men on the Closing Range - LA84...

Men on the Closing Range:EARLY RODEO COMPETITION IN THESOUTHERN NORTHWEST TERRITORIES/ALBERTA

Robert Kossuth is a faculty member in the Department of Kinesiologyand Physical Education at the University of Lethbridge. His research interestsinclude late-nineteenth and early-twentieth century Canadian sport, recreationand leisure history, with a particular focus on local and regional experiences.

Rodeo competitions, which date back hundreds of years in Mexico andto the early nineteenth century in America,1 became established in theCanadian Northwest Territories by the early 1890s. These mostly informalcompetitions appeared in part because they showcased the often remotework-duties of the cowboy. They also fit well within early agriculturalexhibitions where the growing interest in the cowboy and ranching life onthe open range could be celebrated publicly. At a time when the open rangewas coming under pressure from homestead farmers and a less supportivefederal government, ranch owners, managers, and workers sought to protectand entrench their way of life. One strategy employed to meet these endsincluded exhibitions of their skills and physical prowess, and this fostered alogical understanding that they were the men who rightfully belonged onthe prairie ranges. By positioning themselves on the physical and culturallandscape these men fostered an overt masculine identity which came to beaccepted through public, physical recreations such as polo and gymkhanasfor ranch owners and managers and through both the formal and informalrodeo competitions of the cowboy. As the open range began to close in thelate 1880s and early 1890s, horsemanship and rodeo contests became one sitewhere these men could express manly virtues and their continuing relevancethrough demonstrations of their open range ranching expertise.

Historical investigations of ranching culture on the Canadian prairies,particularly in the Northwest Territories in the late nineteenth century, havefocused primarily on the economic and social imperatives concerned withsecuring cattle and range land. More attention has been paid however to the

Sporting Traditions, vol. 24, nos. 1-2 (November 2007), pp. 23-42.Published by the Australian Society for Sports History.

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formation of the Calgary Stampede in the second decade of the twentiethcentury,2 with only a limited examination of precursor rodeo events andtheir cultural meanings. Little interest has been shown in understandingthe role of the recreational activities of ranch workers, managers and ownersas a site for constructing masculine identity; while concurrently assertinga legitimate place for these men on the closing range. Finally, althoughissues such as encroaching homestead farming, interest in securing cattleby fencing-in ranges, and a loss of support from the federal government toensure the continuation of large and affordable land leases have been wellestablished, there has been little interest in linking the use of rodeo and otherhorsemanship exhibitions with the goal to securing a lasting place for openrange ranching culture in the Canadian West.

The nature of ranching life on the ranges of the Northwest Territories/Alberta has been examined from a variety of perspectives which include therole of American, British, and Canadian pioneers and their relative impactin establishing the cattle industry beginning in the early 1880s. An issue thathas raised considerable debate is the relative influence of American ranchersand cowboys on the development of the Canadian cattle industry. HistorianD. H. Breen has argued that in the Canadian West, American ranchers werealways only a small minority amongst those of Canadian or British origin.3

Similarly, Lewis G. Thomas attempted to depict these Canadian and Britishranchers as being part of the leisured elite who were not overly involved in thework of ranching.4 This analysis of ranching life in late nineteenth centuryNorthwest Territories has been reconsidered by Simon M. Evans and WarrenElofson. Evans contests Breen's thesis and through a detailed examinationpresents evidence that suggest American ranchers actually held large tractsof ranch land in Canada and thus exerted considerable influence throughthe turn of the twentieth century.5 Elofson, in Cowboys, Gentlemen, and CattleThieves, constructs several arguments that support the notion of a broadrange of influences merging to form the ranching industry in the NorthwestTerritories. He contends that both Breen and Thomas were incorrect tounderestimate the influence from the American West and its impact on theCanadian frontier; arguing that 'while the frontier may have made a lesssubstantive mark in some respects on Canadian than American ranching, itsimpact was nonetheless profound'.6 In a further attempt to shed light on therelationship between Canadian and American cattlemen, Elofson comparesranching life in Montana and the Northwest Territories concluding that'the cattle frontiers respectively of Montana and Alberta/Assiniboia werenot as dissimilar with respect to the question of law and order as might beexpected'.7 Although specifically examining the question of law enforcementin these two regions, his conclusion resonates with the contention that lifeof the western frontier, whether Canadian or American, held numerous

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Robert Kossuth Men on the Closing Range: Early Rodeo Competition in the Southern Northwest Territories/Alberta

commonalities. This point is echoed by William H. Katerberg who in anattempt to dispel the myth of the Canadian 'Mild West and Wild West' ofAmerica suggests that '[t]he American West was not as exceptionally violentas pop culture has it, and the Canadian West not so peaceful'.8 To these ends,when considering how rodeo was established in the Canadian West, it is clearthat one must first look south for answers.

Drawing from the understanding that the Canadian and AmericanWestern frontiers shared many similar cultural experiences, it is possible toextend to Canada Mary Lou LeCompte's position that Mexican Charreadaswere the direct ancestors of the rodeos that appeared in nineteenth centuryAmerica.9 Thus, rodeo existed as a common western cultural experience inNorth America. What is not clear, however, is why rodeos only appeared in theNorthwest Territories by the early 1890s a full decade after the cattle industryhad been established there? One explanation may arise from the changingnature of ranching in Canada at this time where fences10 and homesteaderswere beginning to alter the open range lifestyle and work of the cowboy andrancher.11 These competing influences likely spurred the organization ofrodeo competitions in order to ensure that open range ranch culture wasnot lost, or at least did not lose its relevance, in a rapidly changing economicand social environment.

Rodeos and other overt displays of skill and proficiency in the arts ofhorsemanship and cattle-tending provided the men who constructed,managed and worked in the cattle industry the opportunity to assume aplace of prominence in this frontier society. A variety of imported masculineidentities including that of the Mexican/American cowboy, the Canadianfarmer/trader, and the British military officer served to mold the valuesassociated with the men who earned their livelihood on the Canadian range.12

Cecilia Danysk, in her examination of bachelorhood and the construction ofmasculinity in western Canadian farming society, suggests that '[i]n the caseof prairie men and in relation to class, there is not one masculine identity,but many'.13 Although Danysk does not address cattle ranching specifically inher work, she does recognise that masculine identity, particularly of bachelorworkers, represented a process of construction that was related to the needfor validation and self-worth in their work.14 It was the skills of their workthat were valued by these men, including the ability to handle horses and livestock, put up with severe environmental discomfort and display loyalty andstoicism under difficult physical and social conditions. In her anthropologicalstudy of later American rodeo culture, Elizabeth Atwood Lawrence suggeststhat '[i]nitiation into the cowboy brotherhood was stringent, however, astesting rites may be in any society. The constant proving and re-proving ofone's manhood [was] required'.15 This 'raw' or 'rough' version of masculinityunderpinned the relationships both between cowboys and the rest of

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western North American society. As R. W. Connell suggests, there existed'two groups of men and two cultural accounts of masculinity: the brawlingsingle frontiersman and the settled married pioneer farmer ... [where the]frontiersmen were being promoted as exemplars of masculinity'.16 The lifeof the cowboy or range worker, therefore, falls into the broader masculineconstruction of the frontiersman who became either the ideal representativeof western North American masculinity, or was positioned in the role of drifteror rogue. This dual identity of rough respectability resulted in the lifestyle ofthe cowboy becoming stylised and mythologised. Ultimately, the respectableranchers were able to draw upon the cultural cache of the cowboy to furthertheir own interests, while the range workers themselves gained little.

By extension, it could be argued that in the case of ranchers and cowboysthe process of constructing a western masculine identity went beyond workand became further entrenched within the realm of competitive recreationand testing challenges. Several forms of recreation, closely linked to thework of cattle ranching, appeared among ranch workers and the British andCanadian ranch owners and managers. For the former, the rodeo eventsof steer roping and riding broncos provided the competition, while for thelatter polo and the gymkhana served as a means to display their equine skills.At one level these activities provided these men an opportunity to exhibittheir masculine prowess, yet the cowboys did not possess the same freedomenjoyed by their employers. The ranch worker, generally, had limited controlover when or where they could compete and were often chastised if theirrecreations interfered with maintaining civility and order. As well, theseworkers were often left without a voice, particularly when it came to thepopular accounts of cowboy exploits which did not always portray them ina positive light. Therefore, it was within a limited number of special eventssuch as early Wild West shows and agricultural exhibitions that cowboysfound a legitimate venue to visibly demonstrate their masculine abilities;but this seldom occurred on their own terms. Conversely, the ranch ownersand managers could enjoy the benefits of their association with rodeocompetitions while remaining relatively free to participate in their ownpastimes and display their more refined masculine prowess.

The largest ranches to operate on the southwestern ranges of theNorthwest Territories were established in the early 1880s. These ranchesincluded the Cochrane Ranche, the North-West Cattle Company also knownas the Bar U, the Oxley Ranche Company, the Walrond Ranche Company,the Quorn Ranch, the Winder Ranche Company, the OH Ranch, and theMilitary Colonization Ranch.17 All these cattle companies with the exceptionof the OH Ranch were organised by Canadian investors mainly from Quebec,British investors or a combination of the two. Although there were a numberof smaller ranches that operated during this period, these large ranches


Cowboy on ranch, southern Alberta, ca. 1880s. GLENBOW ARCHIVES NA-1046-18

dominated the cattle industry in this region. It is not within the scope of thisinvestigation to examine the details of how these ranches were operated or theleadership roles their managers assumed in the administration of the cattleindustry. Yet, it is important to recognise that the men who administered theranching industry realised both personal and professional benefit from boththeir own recreations and the rodeo competitions involving their employees.

Who were the men that operated ranches of the Canadian West? Clearly,these individuals represented the elite of this frontier society, althoughthey were not necessarily drawn from the industrial powerbrokers ofcentral Canada or the landed gentry of Britain. These ranch managers andowners were required to prove themselves on the range in order to gain theconfidence of and acceptance by their employees. Three individuals providesome insight into the experiences of men from the ranks of ranch owners andmanagers: A. E. Cross the bookkeeper and veterinarian for the CochraneRanch;18 Frederick W. Ings who owned and operatored the OH Ranch;19 andW.R. 'Bob' Newbolt, the son of a British Army officer who first worked forretired Major General Thomas Bland Strange's Military Colonization Ranchand later established his own small ranch.20

Men such as Cross, Ings, and Newbolt were required to endure the samechallenging lifestyle, at least initially, as the cowboys who were in their employ.Upon their arrival in the Northwest Territories, regardless of their position asranch owner or manager, and the horsemanship skills they possessed, these

Robert Kossuth Men on the Closing Range: Early Rodeo Competition in the Southern Northwest Territories/Alberta 27

W. R. Newbolt, rancher, 1884.GLENBOW ARCHIVES NA-1046-5

men were considered 'greenhorns'. When a young Bob Newbolt arrived inthe west in 1884 to join the Military Colonization Ranch his first duty was toassist with the transport of 3000 head of newly purchased cattle from Idahoto the ranch. During the trailing of the cattle Newbolt assessed his situation;'[b]ecause I was a greenhorn, of course they took all sorts of advantages ofme'.21 One necessary adaptation Newbolt made was to discard his 'Englishclothing, flannels, puttees, bowler hat and all ...' and replace them 'with acomplete western cowboy outfit, excepting only a 'six shooter'.22 However,simply changing clothes was insufficient to demonstrate that he was no longeran outsider, a point reinforced when his fellow riders proceeded to use hisbowler hat for target practice. Later in the cattle drive the trail boss presentedNewbolt an opportunity to display his horsemanship skills by providing abronco for him to ride. After several failed attempts Newbolt reminisced that'a Mexican showed me how to hobble my stirrups and hold one rein tighterthan the other to keep the horse bucking in a circle. Then I rode the broncoto a stand still'.23 Over the course of the cattle drive Newbolt managed toearn his place in the group, 'I was developing into a pretty fair cowhand andthe boys were beginning to treat me with a good deal more respect than wasthe case at the start of the trip'.24 Newbolt's experience of being initiated intowestern range life was not unique.

When Frederick Ings arrived in the Northwest Territories from Atlantic


Canada to take ownership of the OH Ranch he also needed to earn therespect of the local cowboys. This journey began prior to his arrival whenhe completed 'a special three month's course in livestock' at Guelph,Ontario.25 It is not known whether this course was similar to ranchingschools in England that advertised training for gentlemen to learn how tobecome an American cowboy.26 Although Ings was Canadian, it is doubtfulthat the cowboys would have viewed a gentleman from Charlottetown,Prince Edward Island much differently than an English squire. Once in theNorthwest Territories Ings reminisced:

It was a great opportunity for a green hand like me to learn somethingabout cow punching ... It was customary when a new man came to anoutfit to give him something tricky in the way of horseflesh to try himout ... I learned a lot from John [Ware]. It was he who taught me torope. He had the patience to drill me until I became fairly expert.27

Ings also recognised the debt owed to American ranch workers when herecounted that:

Most of our best riders came from the States and they taught us all weknew of cattle lore. Over there cattle roundups were an old story; tous they were a new game... We developed in Alberta some very finecattlemen and good riders and good ropers ... Some have becomeso good that Canadian riders rank second to none, but the Yanks stillbeat them roping.28

Newbolt, in his account of his life on the Canadian Prairie summed up histransformation during the years he had spent on his ranch, 'I had developedinto a top notch rancher. I could ride and rope with any of them, could holdmy own in a poker game, and had acquired a special liking for good whisky'.29

The insight provided by these men suggests that when an outsider arrived onthe range he had little option but to prove himself and his abilities in the skillsthat truly mattered-riding broncos and roping cattle.

Of course, proving one's worth on the range during the roundup wasimportant to these men, but it did not end at that. Also of critical importancewas these men's need to demonstrate to their peers a degree of competencein horsemanship. Since rodeo competitions were not customary activities formen of social standing, and to compete against seasoned cowboys in ridingand roping competitions would have been folly, alternative, more exclusiveactivities were required. In the Canadian West these alternative activitiesincluded the gymkhana and polo.

According to Fredrick Ings, an Atlantic Canadian who became owner ofthe OH Ranch in 1883,'[p]olo ... began in 1883 when E.W. Wilmot broughtwith him from England polo sticks and balls'.30 The sport, suggests JohnVarty, became increasingly popular in Calgary and the smaller ranching


communities to the city's south during the 1890s.31 In addition, Varty opinesthat polo held broad appeal for '[p]eople from many levels of the social strata,'from wealthy large ranch owners to smaller rancher-farmers.32 However, polowas clearly not a sport that attracted the attention of many ranch workersor cowboys. Polo was not a sport unique to the Canadian prairies as BiancaPremo provides an account of the role of the Arizona Polo Association'ssponsorship of the first rodeo in Tucson, Arizona in 1925.33 Despite thissimilarity, the polo played in the Canadian Northwest Territories predates theArizona example by several decades with teams being organised in MacLeod,Pincher Creek, and Calgary in the early 1890s.34 The MacLeod side, formedin 1891, hosted a tournament for the Colonel MacLeod Cup against teamsfrom Calgary, Pincher Creek, and High River in 1892. A description ofwhat made a good polo player published in the MacLeod Gazette noted thequalities of 'dashing horsemanship, courage, quickness and success of eye,and strength of wrist and arm ... which are especially dear to the westernheart'.35 Although not exclusive to the ranks of the ranching elite, polo didattract men from this group. For example, A.E. Cross the Cochrane Ranch'sveterinarian,36 is listed among the High River team members who competedin the Calgary Challenge Cup in August of 1895.37 The following year Crosscompeted in the same competition for the Calgary team.38 Bob Newbolt, ayoung Englishman who began ranching near Calgary in the early 1880s,39

recalled his 'batching'40 years prior to his marriage in June 1899, indicatingthat 'I spent a good deal of my spare time in Calgary playing football andpolo'.41 Although Fred Ings name does not appear among the teams thatcompeted in polo during the 1890s, he does mention the gymkhanas asbeing popular and often occurring alongside polo competitions.

Gymkhanas, according to Fredrick Ings:

... were held at the different ranches and were well attended. Thoughthe horses for our cow work were trained for roping and such, westill like to have them able to jump and perform, according to morecivilized standards, and we took great pride in putting them throughtheir paces.42

McLennan, in his examination of sport in early Calgary, found that gymkhanaand polo competitions often took place at the same venues and includedmany of the same competitors. An early example of a gymkhana took placein 1892 and was sponsored by the Calgary Polo Club. This event included 'apostillion race, tent pegging, cigar race, umbrella race, bareback hurdle race,ladies nomination race with side saddle and riding habit, one mile flat andhalf mile tandem races'43 At one 1897 gymkhana held at the Elbow Park trackin Calgary, A. E. Cross is recorded to have finished first in the tent peggingevent.44 The events at these gymkhana competitions seemed to provide these


Polo team at Pincher Creek, Alberta, 1898. GLENBOW ARCHIVES NA-998-1.

men with an opportunity to display their horsemanship skills before boththeir peers and the gathered crowds who, at the larger events, were chargedadmission. Generally, participants in these contests seemed to have adopteda playful or non-serious attitude. This light tone would have provided severaladvantages including reducing risk to these men's egos should they not performas expected, as well as to clearly set their activities apart from competitiverodeo competitions dominated by the working ranch cowboys.

To clearly juxtapose the competitions of the ranch owners and managerswith those of the range workers or cowboys it is necessary to consider that thesetwo groups of men were attempting to arrive at similar ends through differentmeans. However, cowboys who competed in rodeo competitions had less controlover their activity than the ranchers in their polo and gymkhana contests.This relative lack of control is not surprising, given the evidence providedby Elofson that cowboys were poor, generally uneducated, and were offeredemployment only when needed.45 In addition, cowboys had little control overhow their image was shaped and mythologised within the popular press and bythe proprietors of early Wild West shows who employed the cowboys' skills andtalents, selling their mystique to a primarily urban audience.

Mary Lou LeCompte provides persuasive evidence supporting thedominant Hispanic influence on the growth of rodeo competitions in theUnited States during the nineteenth century.46 Her argument identifiesthat the rodeo of the American West was substantially based within the


Gymkhana at Calgary, Alberta, 1895. GLENBOW ARCHIVES NA-2084-28

Mexican charrería. Charreadas were contests that originated in Mexico in thesixteenth century and were normally associated with fiestas, which 'includedroping steers and horses, riding wild bulls and broncos, and bull wrestling'.47

Additionally, LeCompte suggests that American rodeo historians have largelyignored the Hispanic influence on the development of the rodeo, preferringto assign rodeo's origins to Wild West shows and other early western festivals.48

Clearly, the origins of rodeo competitions in Canada must be seen as anextension of this cultural appropriation. Thus, the issue to consider is not whenthe first rodeo competitions appeared in the Canadian West, but how thesecompetitions served as sites where cowboys could exhibit their skills and physicalprowess and more pragmatically augment their earnings through prize money.Beyond these personal and material rewards, the cowboy had little control overthe manner in which their image was transmitted to the rest of the countrythrough the various rodeo type contests in which they participated.

North Americans learned about the range life of the cowboy throughpopular newspaper and magazine accounts, as well as Wild West showsthat toured cities in the American east. According to Mary Lou LeCompte,'the emergent popularity of the cowboy, and subsequently cowboy sports,was both a cause and result of Buffalo Bill's Wild West shows and their hostof imitators'.49 Entertainers such as Cody and the types of performancesthat occurred in the shows were widely known even in Northwest Territorycommunities such as MacLeod.50 It is not surprising that people in the


John Ware and family, 1896.GLENBOW ARCHIVES NA-263-1

Canadian West developed a relatively clear understanding of, and interest in,the potential benefits of staging rodeo competitions. For example, the largestwestern Canadian city in the 1890s, Winnipeg, Manitoba attracted a WildWest show in August of 1889 which included the traditional roping and ridingdemonstrations as well as a staked contest in rough bareback riding for $100a side.51 Coverage of this event made its way throughout the western prairiesto towns like Lethbridge,52 and it was through this type of exposure that theexploits of cowboys both local and otherwise could be widely celebrated.

Beyond the entertainment provided by Wild West shows, interest in theexploits of cowboys in their daily work and play persisted. Descriptions ofAmerican rodeo competitions continued to find their way north via localpresses in the 1880s and 1890s. For example, the MacLeod Gazette carried anarticle about the July Fourth 1888 'cowboy tournament' in Prescott, Arizonawhere one 'roping and tying contest' competitor was described as being 'oneof the finest and most skillful vaqueros on the Verde'. The winner of thecontest, Juan Levis, 'showed himself to be possessed of all the traditionalskill of his race in such contests,' yet his success was clearly attributed to hisHispanic heritage.53 The prominence of Hispanic cowboys was not limitedto the United States and these men were not always presented in a positivelight. One informal exhibition that took place in MacLeod received less thanpositive coverage, when it was reported that 'A Mexican named Antoniocreated quite an excitement in the west end ... by the reckless display of


horsemanship exhibited while breaking in a bronco for Dr. Allen'.54 This briefaccount provides evidence that Hispanic cowboys did make their way to theCanadian prairies and that a cowboy could be chastised as easily as he couldbe celebrated if he chose to undertake his work or play in a manner deemedto be inappropriate.

Alongside the Hispanic cowboys who made their way to Canada, thereis also evidence of Black cowboys moving north with the expansion ofcattle ranges into the Northwest Territories. One individual in particular,John Ware, dominates tales of cowboy lore from the early period of cattleranching in the region. It is likely that more Black range workers moved intoCanada, but as Philip Duram and Everett L. Jones argue, Black cowboys inthe American West were largely excluded from histories written by whiteSoutherners.55 Thus, much of the evidence of the Black cowboys' experienceon the prairies of the Northwest Territories falls to accounts of John Ware.

Born a slave on a South Carolina cotton plantation,56 Ware headed west toTexas upon gaining his freedom where he learned horsemanship and cattlework.57 According to Grant MacEwan,

John Ware's ability to ride the rough ones had to be proven. Heacquired lots of riding experience while working with Old Murph,but it wasn't with the hard-bucking horses and he had somemisgiving. Eagerly he wanted to prove an equality with fellow-riders.But John possessed a natural skill in staying on a bad actor, and thecrushing force of his muscles furnished added advantage. From thebeginning of the long journey, he was able to master every horse thatstruggled to dump him.58

Eventually, Ware made his way to Canada in 1882 as part of a cattle-drivefrom Montana to the newly opened rangeland of the Northwest Territories.59

The extent to which Ware came to be accepted into the community of rangeworkers is evident through the positive coverage afforded to his physicalexploits. In one incident in early 1885 it was reported that Ware astonished hispeers by staying on the back of a particularly difficult bronco that leaped off asheer cliff into a river. Further, he astounded all onlookers when he managedto stay in his saddle and ride the horse out of the river.60 In the same way thatmany cowboys sought to improve themselves, Ware began to secure his ownstock and recorded his own brand — 9999 — which, over the next decade,he expanded into a herd of over three hundred.61 Although Ware was ableto gain a degree of respect within the community of cowboys and stockmen,particularly because of his ability to break wild broncos and manage stock,he did at times receive a less than cordial reception when he ventured intothe larger town of Calgary.62 A degree of racist distrust existed among thosewho did not know him in his role as a cowboy and stockman. But because of


his abilities as a cowboy Ware became an icon who represented the region'scowboy mythology.

Awareness of the exploits of cowboys did not end with bronco busting andcattle roping. The challenges that arose for the cowhand from the naturalenvironment also appealed to people's interest. One publicised incident thathighlighted the skill, courage and expertise of the ranch workers occurredin the Cypress region of the Northwest Territories. One Chas McCauly ofthe C.Y. Ranch captured a mountain lion from horseback and dispatched itwith his knife.63 Another large predator that, according to reports, fell underthe lasso of the cowboys was the bear. According to the MacLeod Gazette itwas reported that '[t]he cowboys of northwestern Texas are becoming veryproficient in lassoing bears'.64 In one account B.O. McCutheen 'the best roperin Northwest Texas' caught a large black bear, trailed it until help arrived andthen 'dismounted and killed him with a pocket knife'.65 Elizabeth AttwoodLawrence notes that '[w]ild species were tolerated only so long as they didnot potentially hinder the cattle herder's economic pursuits, and death to allpredators was the rule of the range'.66 Thus, these tales of cowboy's abilitiesin overcoming wild animals such as bears and panthers both served theeconomic imperative of cattle ranching while also sparking the imaginationof those who read about these feats throughout the west and beyond.

Cowboys of the Canadian prairies at times represented both a masculineideal and a potentially disruptive element. The local spring and fall cattleroundups were one site where cowboys were usually presented in a positivelight. A description of the spring 1888 roundup in High River boasted 'onehundred and twenty five riders mounted on these gentle animals, whowere making frantic efforts to displace their riders'.67 The need to presenta positive account of 'The Alberta Cowboy' led Dr Duncan McEachren, thefederal government's chief veterinary surgeon, to pen an article titled 'Notthe Bold Bad Men we Read about'.68 Specifically, McEachren argued that:

It is a mistake to suppose that the wild west cowboy of the novel orsensational story is the genus home to be met with on Canadianranches ... These are the men who assume the picturesque dressof a class of men than whom there is not a more honest or moretrustworthy class anywhere.69

Although it is clear that some differences existed between ranch life inCanada and the United States, it could be suggested that McEachrenwas attempting to disassociate Canadian ranch workers from the equallydebatable stereotype often attributed to outlaw American cowboys.70 Yet,local newspapers could not resist making mention of cowboy misbehaviour.For example, a brief note in the 12 June 1890 MacLeod Gazette stated that '[t]woor three bold, bad cowboys gave an exhibition in town on Tuesday'. Later that


Cowboy on bucking horse,southern Alberta, ca. 1880s.GLENBOW ARCHIVES NA-1494-36

same year, likely in an attempt to poke fun at the cowboy's popular image,several local gentlemen 'dressed in full cowboy costume, sombrero hats,Mexican spurs and chaps,' engaged in a sham race after which they posedto have their picture taken 'in true cowboy fashion'.71 Thus, even before thearrival of organised rodeo events, people living in the Canadian West werealready forming a specific understanding of the cowboy and how they oughtto be considered. These men were the backbone of the ranching industry,but could as easily be viewed as a potentially disruptive element, a threat tocreating and maintaining a civil frontier society.

One way to disassociate negative views of cowboys from the cattle-ranchingindustry was to provide cowboys with an opportunity to exhibit their uniqueskills within the legitimate forum of the agricultural exhibition. This venueassisted in constructing the cowboy as a masculine ideal and champion of thewestern way of life. Simultaneously, rodeo competitions also provided ranchmanagers and owners a site to further their own interests by enhancing andprotecting the importance of cattle ranching in the region.

One of the first agricultural exhibitions held in the southern regionsof the Northwest Territories took place in MacLeod in October 1891.72

The acknowledged highlights of the exhibition were the steer roping and


the bronco riding events. One report focused on the competition betweenJohnny Franklin and Billy Stewart where '[b]oth rode rank outlaws, whopitched until they looked as if they would tie themselves in knots'.73 Thiscompetition took place as a result of the patronage of 'Mr. W. H. Patrick,I. G. Baker and Go's ranch manger, [who] kindly supplied the steers' andbroncos.74 Colin Howell suggests that the competitions held at this exhibitionwere the earliest to resemble a rodeo in Canada.75 It may be more accurate tosuggest that it was the first time that roping and riding events were officiallyjudged while being held in conjunction with a legitimate community event.Of course, the dubious undertaking of trying to determine the 'first' rodeoraises a variety of concerns many of which are developed within May LouLeCompte's examination of the Hispanic influences on American Rodeo.

What can be argued, however, is that the success of the 1891 competitionin MacLeod likely led other communities following suit by including rodeocompetitions in subsequent fairs and exhibitions. No longer would spectatorsbe required to travel to the roundup camps to witness the cowboys' riding androping skills, these could now be displayed as a part of the local agriculturalfair for all to see. In May 1893 the Calgary Agricultural Society advertised'four days of sports' which would include '[t]he roping of range cattle bycowboys — genuine cowboys straight from the roundup'.76 Of course, theroping contest represented only one of a number of events along with Indianpolo and Indian races, and thoroughbred racing. Similarly, the Calgarysummer exhibition of 1894 included '[t]he riding of cowboys ... [where]although the horses did not pitch very badly some good riding was done andthe men could have stood it a good deal harder'.77 Despite only brief mentionof the rodeo events from the 1894 exhibition appearing in the Calgarypress, the Edmonton Bulletin provided additional details about the occasion.Specifically, it was noted that:

The best drawing card of the whole exhibition, however, were thebucking and roping contests ... To those unaccustomed to ranch lifeit was a thrilling sight to see wild, unbroken horses lassoed, bridled,saddled and ridden by these fearless men.78

The roping event also received detailed coverage, highlighting competitors'efforts to 'throw their steers over and over again until they could get them tied'.In one incident of note John Ware, who had won the event the previous year,

made a beautiful throw and threw his steer and tied him in amarvelous time of 54 seconds ... But two minutes later the steer brokeloose and the $100 prize fell from the this veteran's grasp, as the ruleof the contest required the animal to be kept tied five minutes.79

The recognition provided in these accounts suggests that by 1894 rodeoevents were established elements within the exhibitions and fairs of towns


such as MacLeod and Calgary. As well, those who organised and supportedthese events had clearly recognised the potential to attract wide interestthrough their support of rodeo contests. The cowboys, if they were skilledand luck favoured them, could walk away with a cash prize. The organisersbenefited by selling more tickets. But, those who had the most to gain werethe ranchers, for whom these events became an important public relationsexercise; one that supported the logic and relevance of their businesses,linking it to the future of the Canadian Northwest Territories.

In the Northwest Territories of Canada the development of rodeocompetitions arose directly from the close cultural ties that existed withthe American West. At a time when the dual nature of the cowboy as both amasculine ideal and potential 'bold, bad man' had captured the imaginationsof western Canadians, rodeo competitions associated with local agriculturalfairs and exhibitions became the venue where this way of life could becelebrated. As a result, it was in the interests of the cattle ranch owners andmanagers to support these ventures, as the rodeo events served to furtherinstitutionalise their businesses as an important part of western Canadianlife. Therefore, without having to abandon their own eastern Canadian andBritish masculine identities as represented in their recreations of polo andgymkhana, these men were able to advance their own ranching interestsduring a period when the open range and their way of life was underthreat. The rodeo became part of the ranching industry's public face andrepresented an additional use of the cowboy beyond the manual labour theyprovided on the ranch and range.

Notes

1 Mary Lou LeCompte, 'The Hispanic Roots of American Rodeo', Studiesin Latin American Popular Culture, vol. 13, 1994, pp. 57-76.

2 See Donna Livingston, The Cowboy Spirit: Guy Weadick and theCalgary Stampede, Greystone Books, Vancouver, 1996; James H. Gray,The 100 Year History of the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede, WesternProducer Prairie Books, Saskatoon, 1985; and Guy Weadick, 'Origin ofthe Calgary Stampede', Alberta Historical Review, vol. 14, no. 4, 1966,pp. 20-24.

3 D. H. Breen, 'The Turner Thesis and the Canadian West', in Lewis H.Thomas (ed), Essays on Western History University of Alberta Press,Edmonton, 1976, p. 152.

4 Lewis G. Thomas, Rancher's Legacy: Alberta Essays, in P. A. Dunae(ed.), University of Alberta Press, Edmonton, 1986.

5 Simon M. Evans, 'American Cattlemen on the Canadian Range', PrairieForum, vol. 4, no. 1, spring 1979, pp. 121-36. Evans suggests that theinterest of American ranchers in Canadian range land fluctuated from


the 1880s through the turn of the twentieth century for several reasonsincluding the prevailing legislation which prior to 1882 specifically favourednon-American lease holders. As well, incidents of severe winter weatherresulting in large scale cattle losses in 1886/87 and 1906/07 discouragedAmerican ranchers. Both these are suggested to be reasons for curtailedexpansion of large American cattle companies in the region.

6 Warren Elofson, Cowboys, Gentlemen & Cattle Thieves: Ranching on theWestern Frontier, McGill-Queen's University Press, Montreal, 2000,pp. xv-xvi.

7 Warren M. Elofson, 'Law and Disorder on the Ranching Frontiers ofMontana and Alberta/Assiniboia, 1870-1914', Journal of the West,vol. 42, no. 1, winter 2003, p. 49.

8 William H. Katerberg, 'A Northern Vision: Frontiers and the West in theCanadian and American Imagination', American Review of CanadianStudies, vol. 33, no. 4, 2003, p. 546.

9 LeCompte, 'The Hispanic Roots of American Rodeo', pp. 57-76.10 MacLeod Gazette, 25 April 1889, p. 5. The Wolrond Ranche fenced in

a large portion of their land over a distance of fourteen miles. See also,Lethbridge News, 5 February 1890, p. 3; Sir Boderick Cameron acquired13,000 cedar posts which he intended to use to fence in his ranch.However, Elofson, in Cowboys, Gentlemen & Cattle Thieves, p. 18,argues that settlers and homesteads did not actually cause most ranchestoo much concern as the need to control their cattle ultimately led themto fence in their ranches.

11 Sheilagh Jameson, Ranches, Cowboys and Characters: Birth of Alberta'sWestern Heritage, Glenbow Museum, Calgary, 1987, pp. 12-13. In 1892federal legislation was passed that ended the closed leases systemby 1896. These leases had protected ranchers from encroachment byhomesteaders, but after several conflicts between the ranchers andsettlers new legislation favouring the latter passed. The election of aLiberal government in Canada in 1896 further eroded the ranchers'position as they lost the relative protection they had enjoyed underearlier Conservative governments.

12 For examples of how the trading/bush and British army officermasculinities impacted upon Canadian physical recreation see Kevin B.Wamsley, 'The Public Importance of Men and the Importance of PublicMen: Sport and Masculinities in Nineteenth Century Canada', in PhilipWhite and Kevin Young (eds), Sport and Gender in Canada, Oxford,Toronto, 1999, pp. 24-39; and Robert D. Day, 'The British Garrison atHalifax: Its contribution to the Development of Sport in the Community',in Morris Mott (ed.), Sport in Canada: Historical Readings, Copp ClarkPitman, Toronto, 1989, pp. 28-36.

13 Cecilia Danysk, 'A Bachelor's Paradise: Homesteaders, Hired Hands, andthe Construction of Masculinity, 1880-1930', in Catherine Cavanuaghand Jeremy Mouat (eds), Making Western Canada: Essays on EuropeanColonization and Settlement, Garamond, Toronto, 1996, p. 155.

14 Danysk, 'A Bachelor's Paradise', p. 155.


15 Elizabeth Atwood Lawrence, Rodeo: An Anthropologist Looks at theWild and the Tame, Univ. of Tennessee Press, Knoxville, 1982, p. 68.

16 R. W. Connell, Masculinities: Knowledge, Power and Social Change,Univ. of California Press, Berkley, 1995, p. 194.

17 Jameson, Ranches, Cowboys and Characters, pp. 20-31. The CochraneRanche established in 1881 by Senator Matthew H. Cochrane ofCompton Quebec. The North-West Cattle Company (Bar U) establishedin 1882 by Fred Stimpson a farmer and stockman from Compton,Quebec, who persuaded Hugh Allan, head of Allan Steamship lines ofMontreal, to become the majority owner of the company. The OxleyRanche Company was established in 1882 by John Craig an OntarioFarmer who recruited owners Alexander Stavely Hill a British Memberof Parliament and the Earl of Lathom a noted English a cattle breederto invest. The Walrond Ranche Company formed in 1883 by managerand minority owner Dr Duncan McEachran and majority Owner SirJohn Walrond a prominent British Conservative. The Quorn Ranchwas established in 1886 by Englishman C. W. Martin and a groupof sportsmen who were mainly members of the Quorn Hunt Club ofMarket Harborough, Leicestershire to raise horses. The Winder RancheCompany was set-up in 1880 by William Winder of Lennoxville, Quebec,a captain in the North-West Mounted Police along with five businessmenshareholders from the Eastern Townships of Quebec. The OH Ranchwas formed in 1881 by American trader Orville H. Smith and anotherAmerican Lafayette French. Smith and French sold the ranch in 1883to Frederick Ings from Charlottetown, PEI, along with brother J. WalterIngs who joined him in 1884. Finally, the Military Colonization Ranchwas organised in 1883 by Major General Thomas Bland Strange whorecruited his military friends as shareholders, primarily retired armyofficers, to raise horses for the British Army.

18 L.V. Kelly, The Range Men, Willow Creek Publishing, High River, Alberta,1988, p. 84. Cross was sent to the Cochrane Ranch in 1885 to act asbookkeeper and veterinary surgeon and to assist manager W. E. Kerfoot.

19 Jameson, Ranches, Cowboys and Characters, p. 30. Frederick Ingspurchased the OH Ranch in 1883 and along with his brother Walter ran asuccessful operation for several decades.

20 Jameson, Ranches, Cowboys and Characters, p. 31. Newbolt joined theMilitary Colonization Ranch in 1884 one year after it was established.

21 W. R. 'Bob' Newbolt, 'Memories of Bowchase Ranch', as told by AngusMcKinnon, Alberta History, vol. 32, no. 4, autumn 1984, p. 3.

22 Newbolt, 'Memories of Bowchase Ranch', p. 3.23 Newbolt, 'Memories of Bowchase Ranch', p. 4. Also see LeCompte, 'The

Hispanic Roots of American Rodeo', pp. 57-76, for an in-depth examinationof the skills of the Mexican vaqueros and the various competitions relatedto their work that formed the basis of later rodeo contests.

24 Newbolt, 'Memories of Bowchase Ranch', p. 4.25 Fredrick W. Ings, Before the Fences: Tales from the Midway Ranch,

Jim Davis (ed.), Metra Printing, Calgary, 1980, p. 3. Shortly before his


death in 1936 Ings completed a manuscript on his experiences of earlyranching; this work is the result.

26 MacLeod Gazette, 'Making Bad Men. A School in England for TrainingRanche Hands', 16 May 1888, p. 1.

27 Ings, Before the Fences, pp. 4-17.28 Ings, Before the Fences, pp. 25-26.29 Newbolt, 'Memories of Bowchase Ranch', p. 7.30 Ings, Before the Fences, p. 61. Little information exists about W. E.

Wilmot, although an E. Wilmot is mentioned among the cowboys andranchers operating in the country south of High River in L. V. Kelly's, TheRange Men, p. 36.

31 John F. Varty, 'Polo and British Settlement in Alberta 1880-1930', AlbertaHistory, vol. 43, no. 3, summer 1995, pp. 8-9.

32 Varty, 'Polo and British Settlement in Alberta', p. 11.33 Biacna Premo, 'Recreating Identity: Recreation on the Arizona-Sonora

Border, 1880-1930', Studies in Latin American Popular Culture, vol. 16,pp. 31-53.

34 William M. McLennan, Early Sport in Calgary: An Account of the Sports,Games, Personalities, Facilities and Recreation of the Pioneers in theEarly Calgary Area, Fort Brisebois, Calgary, 1983, p. 19.

35 MacLeod Gazette, 9 June 1892, p. 3.36 Kelly, The Range Men, p. 84.37 McLennan, Early Sport in Calgary, p. 21.38 McLennan, Early Sport in Calgary, p. 22.39 Newbolt, 'Memories of Bowchase Ranch', pp. 1-10.40 See Danysk, 'A Bachelor's Paradise', p. 158 for a description of the term

'to batch'. According to Danysk this term 'entered the prairie lexicon withease, indicating the social acceptability of farm men living without women'.

41 Newbolt, 'Memories of Bowchase Ranch', p. 7.42 Ings, Before the Fences, pp. 60-61.43 McLennan, Early Sport in Calgary, p. 20. See descriptions of events

Calgary Herald, 24 July 1894.44 McLennan, Early Sport in Calgary, p. 22.45 Elofson, 'Law and Disorder on the Ranching Frontiers of Montana and

Alberta/Assiniboia', p. 45.46 See Mary Lou LeCompte, 'The Hispanic Influence on the History of

Rodeo: 1823-1922', Journal of Sport History, vol. 12, no. 1, pp. 21-38;and LeCompte, 'The Hispanic Roots of American Rodeo', pp. 57-76.

47 Le Compte, 'The Hispanic Influence on the History of Rodeo', pp. 21-22.48 Le Compte, 'The Hispanic Influence on the History of Rodeo', pp. 21-22.49 Le Compte, 'The Hispanic Influence on the History of Rodeo', p. 30.50 MacLeod Gazette, 6 September 1887, p. 6.51 Winnipeg Free Press, 14 August 1889, p. 1. Coverage of this event was

also provided in the 15 and 17 August editions of the newspaper.


52 Lethbridge News, 28 August 1889, p. 3. The article describing the showfinished by noting that '... the outfit goes east to do the towns and citiesof Eastern Canada'.

53 MacLeod Gazette, 2 August 1888, p. 3.54 MacLeod Gazette, 18 October 1888, p. 5.55 Philip Durham and Everett I. Jones, The Negro Cowboys, Dodd and

Mead, New York, 1965; reprint, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, 1983,pp. 3-4.

56 Grant MacEwan, John Ware's Cow Country, Institute of Applied Art,Edmonton, 1960, p. 11.

57 MacEwan, John Ware's Cow Country, pp. 20-28.58 MacEwan, John Ware's Cow Country, pp. 31-32.59 MacEwan, John Ware's Cow Country, pp. 45-52. It was during this

cattle drive that John Ware proved his ability as a cowboy and was thenoffered work with the North West Cattle Company when the stockarrived in Canada.

60 MacLeod Gazette, 23 June 1885; and MacEwan, John Wares CowCountry pp. 67-68.

61 MacEwan, John Ware's Cow Country, pp. 106-07.62 MacEwan, John Ware's Cow Country, pp. 107-08.63 Lethbridge News, 9 July 1890, p. 3.64 MacLeod Gazette, 29 November 1888, p. 3.65 MacLeod Gazette, 29 November 1888, p. 3.66 Lawrence, Rodeo: An Anthropologist Looks at The Wild and the Tame, p. 63.67 Lethbridge News, 7 June 1888, p. 3.68 Lethbridge News, 3 April 1889, p. 1. This article was reprinted from the

Quebec Chronicle.69 Lethbridge News, 3 April 1889, p. 1.70 See Elofson, 'Law and Disorder on the Ranching Frontiers of Montana

and Alberta/Assiniboia', pp. 40-51, for an examination of the similarcircumstances faced by cowboys on both sides of the border.

71 MacLeod Gazette, 11 December 1890, p. 3.72 Colin Howell, Blood, Sweat, and Cheers: Sport and the Making of

Modern Canada, University of Toronto Press, Toronto, 2001, p. 20.73 MacLeod Gazette, 22 October 1891, p. 2.74 MacLeod Gazette, 22 October 1891, p. 2.75 Howell, Blood, Sweat, and Cheers, p. 20.76 Calgary Herald, 31 May 1893, p. 2.77 Calgary Herald, 20 July 1894, p. 4.78 Edmonton Bulletin, 2 August 1894, p. 2.79 Edmonton Bulletin, 2 August 1894, p. 2.


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