|
Cowgirl Race, 1908.
Woman have participated in the Frontier Day celebration since at least 1904 when
Bertha Blancett nee Kaepernick (1883-1979) gave an exhibition of bronc riding. Mrs. Blancett appeared in
other rodeos including winning the cowgirl's bucking contest at Pendleton in
1914. Her husband Dell was a bulldogger. Bertha rode as his hazer. A "hazer" is a second rider who
task is to keep the steer running in a straight line without touching or assisting the
wrestler. Canada entered World War I in 1914. Dell Blancett was among those killed serving King and
Country.
Prairie Rose Henderson on Gin Fiz, 1912
Prairie Rose Henderson first entered the 1910 contest and was a member of the company for
the Irwin Brothers Wild West Show. [Writer's note, a history of Rodeo contained in the
program for the 1936 Boston Garden Rodeo, discussed on a subsequent page, indicates that
Praire Rose appeared at the 1901 Frontier Day show.]
Prairie Rose Henderson, Frontier Days. Photo by Ralph Doubleday.
Prairie Rose also
participated in 1911 and 1917. She remained active until the 1930's. In 1932, her then
husband Charles Coleman was arrested. On his release from jail, she had vanished from
their Fremont County home. Seven years later her remains were found and identified by Coleman and her brother from
a ring and other articles. From the articles found with her remains, she apparently froze to death in a
snow storm. Other husband and wife entrants included the Danks, the Strouds,
the Hastings, and the Roaches. As noted
on a subsequent page, Clayton Danks was the 1904 Steer Roping Champion and the
1907 Saddle Bronc Champion. Mrs. Danks won the 1908 Denver Post Ladies' Relay.
Indeed, the prize won by Mrs. Danks was greater than than of the men.
Goldie St. Clair on Red Sandy, photo by J. E. Stimson, 1909
Compare the above postcard with the next, two different postcards made by
two different photographers within moments of each other.
Goldie St. Clair on Red Sandy, tinted photo by J. Shimitz, 1909.
Observe the quirt. Over the years the rules for Rodeos have changed. Beginning about 1929 uniform rules for the
various contests began to be developed. Thus, the writer of a 1936 rodeo program observed:
Rodeo rules have been changed for the better, making each contest faster. Horses,
instead of being saddled in the open and thereby wasting much of their strength before
the rider gets aboard, are now saddled in the chutes. Nine or ten seconds on a fresh
bronk that has been "poured out" of a chute, is equal to a finish ride on a bronk
that has been saddled in the open.
There is no more mishandling of animals at a Rodeo. All the "breaks" today are
in favor of the horse or the steer, as against the contestant. Spurs are taped and
no quiting of horses is permitted. Any cowboy found guilty of cruelty to an
an animal is barred from the Rodeo.
Goldie St. Clair on Red Sandy, real photo by J. Shimitz, 1909.
The reference on the sign is to Capt. A. H. Hardy, a well-known trick shooter.
Captain Hardy toured the country giving demonstrations of his prowness with a
Model 1897 lever action Marlin .22 as well as with revolvers. The reference to
Peters is to the Peters Cartidge and Ammunition Company.
Goldie St. Clair with her husband, B. St. Clair, was a performer with Miller Bros. 101 and won both the 1909 and 1910 Women's
Bronco Riding Contests. In the 1910 Contest former president Roosevelt expressed concern
that she might be hurt. The following year, in Philadelphia, a bronc named
Roan Mare fell on her causing life threatening injuries. Soon St. Clair was back performing including at the
1916 State Fair in Douglas.
Next page, Frontier Days continued.
|