Cowboys

By

Danielle Curto & Alex Maxwell

Ms. Watts

Yearbook

March 1, 2011

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Cowboys
Introduction:
I. What is a Cowboy
A. Cowboys
1. Lived in grasslands.
1. Their work called needed men who were independent, self-reliant,
required courage and endurance.
2. Took pride in their lifestyle.
3. Were regarded as wild and dangerous.
4. The cowboy has become the center of a myth built on the idea of
the Wild West.
5. Were considered frontiersmen.

A. Horse
1. Were ridden by cowboys.
2. Italian cowboys had a horse called Maremmana.
6. In southern France the cowboys ride horses called Camargue.
7. North African cowboys rode Barb horses.
I. Charros and Vaqueros
A. The Spanish settlers of Mexico in the early 1500’s
1. Brought longhorn Iberian cattle and Andalusian horses.
2. Turned to cattle ranching as a profitable as well as honorable
occupation.

B. Charros
1. Displayed their wealth with personal ornaments of silver.
8. Nice saddles.
9. Wore fine-quality brown suede jacket and trousers, finely woven
scarf, heavy cotton shirt with embroidered panels on the front, wide-
brimmed black felt sombrero

C. Saddles
1. Silver covered thread, silver plated conchas (decorative disc), solid
silver on the saddle horn, and behind the cantle.
2. Women were only allowed to ride on side-saddles.
3. Leather stamped and carved with ornate decorations.
D. Vaqueros
1. Thought they were superior farmers.
2. They were proud of their work.
3. Settled their personal quarrels with firearms.
4. Had Sunday’s Best clothes for attending church, marriages, funerals,
and parties.
5. They wore spurs on their boots.
II. The Best Horses
A. Relationship With Humans
1. Essential to any crop of large-scale cattle raising.

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 10. Wild horses died out.
11. Cross-breeding and different environments have created different
colors, sizes, abilities and characteristics.
12. The first American breed was the Idea Cow Pony.
III. Saddles – Old&New
A. A cowboy sat on his horse up to 15 hours a day.
1. The saddle was the most important piece of equipment.
2. Usually his own and cost a whole month’s wages.
3. Evolved from the 16th century Spanish war saddle.
4. Holds its armored rider in place.
5. Overtime they changed in weight in shape, but were all built on a
wooden frame.
6. Covered in dressed leather.
IV. Saddling a Horse
A. Multitasking – sitting on a horse & being able to control it.
1. Stirrups were used by the Huns.
2. Spanish cavalry were the best at controlling their horses & they
took their skills with them to America.
3. American cowboys later took this knowledge & adapted it.
4. The saddles are made with wood, leather, and metal.
5. An item called the saddle blanket is draped over the horse over the
horse before the saddle is put on it.
6. After the saddle is put on the latigo and cinch straps are tightened.
7. After these steps the horse is ready for riding.
V. North American Cowboys
A. Cowboys work very hard for very little pay.
1. Most cowboys came from the South, others from the East and
Midwest & Europe.
2. In Canada cowboys work on the big ranches.
3. After cowboys disappeared in 1907 the cowboy became merely a
employee in a new reorganized business.
4. Cowboys were unjustly despised in American newspapers as wild.
5. Their disappearing way of life was seen as romantic & the cowboy
became a national hero.
6. Riders and artists began to praise the cowboy’s courage, self-
reliance and individualism.
B. Famous Cowboys
1. Deadwood Dick
a) An African American cowboy, his auto-biography was read
like a novel.
b) Trail drover, rodeo champion, Indian fighter and crack shot.
VI. Hats & More Hats
A. The cowboys hat was his trademark
1. Styles might vary from sombreros to Stetsons.
2. In the blazing sun the high crown kept the head cool while the
broad brim shaded the eyes and neck.

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 3. In the rain and snow the hat was a mini-umbrella it also protected
against thorns and low-hanging branches.
4. Made of high quality felt.
5. Made to take years wear.
6. A cowboy used his versatile hat as an alternative to carry water, fan
his fires, and occasionally even as a pillow.
7. Cowboy’s hats around the world look generally similar.
B. Different Types of Hats
1. Sombreros
a) Were decorated with gold wire embroidery.
b) Very broad brim.
c) Braided-horse hair band.
d) Tall crown.
2. Top Hat
a) High crown hat.
b) Called the “ten gallon” hat.
c) Earned the wear stares.
VII. Dressing a Cow Boy
A. Cowboys choose their clothes according to the type of work they have to do.
1. Clothing had to be strong & had to be able to deal with a bunch of
weather.
2. Different locations required different clothes.
3. Clothes had to be tough so they could deal with threats from both
humans and animals.
4. Started out the day with long johns.
5. Shirts and pants were made with heavy cotton.
6. Wore long boots, bandana, and hat.
7. Put on a Mexican-style waistcoat.
8. Stovepipe chaps and spurs.
VIII. Boots
A. Cowboys took care in choosing their boots.
1. Boots cost $15.
2. They had high heels
3. Spurs were used to get on horses because they barely groomed
them.
4. Boots did not have any zippers, buckles, or straps so you had to slip
your foot inside.
5. Were made of leather.
IX. Chaps
A. Riding hard through thorny brush could rip someone’s pants & skin.
1. Came from Mexican Vaqueros. 0.
2. In dha wintuh dey wuur wuul on der chaps.

3. Ankle length.

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 Billy woke up excitedly because today was the day when he could work with his
dad. He hopped out of bed and put on his long johns. He ran into his dad’s room and
woke him up. His dad got up and helped him pick out the correct clothing. Billy put on a
heavy cotton shirt and pants, along with long boots and a hat. His hat was in a sombrero
style with gold embroidery and a braided horse hair band. His dad was wearing similar
things except his hat was a top hat with a high crown. Before they left the house, they put
on chaps with wool because it was winter.
As they left the house, it started snowing and Billy was thankful that his hat
served as a mini umbrella. Billy and his dad grabbed their saddles and began to prepare
the horse for riding. First they put saddle blankets on the horse and then the saddle. They
tightened the latigo and cinch straps and got on the horse. Billy admired his saddle that
was made with wood, leather and metal. His dad bought both of them custom saddles
which took two months of his pay check. Billy was glad that he had a dad that thought of
him.
They began riding and dads horse was getting a little out of control, so he kicked
the side of the horse with his spurs. After about thirty minutes of riding, they approached
the grassland near their house. Billy’s dad got off of his horse and started to gather the
cattle and other horses. After the cattle were together, they started to brand them. They
took two branding irons and put them in the fire; after that, they pressed it to the skin of
the cattle.
“Doesn’t that hurt ‘em dad?” Billy asked.
“Nope! It’s practically painless!” replied Billy’s dad.
After they finished branding the cattle, they noticed that a horse was running
away. Dad jumped on his horse and started to chase after it with a looped rope. When he
was close enough, he flung the rope and it landed around the horse’s neck. Dad took his
horse as well as the horse that had broken free, back to the ranch.
“Whoa dad! How did you do that?” yelled Billy.
“Oh it’s just a little skill. I can teach you if you want.” Replied Dad.
“That’d be great! What is that thing?” questioned Billy pointing at the rope.
“This? It’s called a lariat son.” Dad said matter of factly.
Billy saw a random person coming up on the farm and pointed it out to his dad.
Dad looked up and saw a Vaquero approaching them. Dad mumbled under his breath
and prepared to deal with Diego’s huge ego.
“Hello Rob.” Said Diego snobbishly.
“Oh hello. How’s the farm going?” said Dad.
“It’s the best farm in the world and its better than this rundown ranch.” Diego remarked.
“Get off of my ranch and don’t come back!” Dad yelled.
Billy didn’t like seeing his dad upset and he told him to calm down. Dad
apologized for getting upset and explained that Vaqueros were very prideful and Diego
was trying to point out that his ranch was better than ours.
They continued to work until about 6pm. Billy and Dad rode home together and
when they got home dinner was ready. Billy’s mom asked them how the day was and he
was so excited that he couldn’t even speak. That night when Billy went to bed, he thought
about how great the day had been. He couldn’t wait to grow up and become a cowboy,
just like his dad.

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 WORKS CITED
Murchoch, David. Cowboy. 2000 Dorling Kindersley Limited. New York:
Dorling Kindersley, 2000. 1-27. Print.