Rodeo History

The history of rodeo is a tale of how horse breaking, riding and branding developed into what the sport of today, a popular and sanctioned competition taking skill to win.

Rodeo comes from the Spanish word “rodear,” which means to encircle or to surround. Its history traces back to great horsemanship traditions in earlier centuries.

The Early 1700’s
When Spain held what is now the American West, Spanish cattlemen had much influence on the American cowboy, from clothes to traditions on the early ranches, such as horse breaking, riding and branding. Skilled horsemen were needed to handle the herds.

The Early 1800’s
More and more, the styles and traditions of the Spanish and Mexican cowboys were copied and made their way into America’s own traditions.

1851
In California, the rodeo was not a sporting event, but became part of ranch life and law. All stock farm owners were required to give one rodeo each year to separate their cattle.

1882
William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody organized the first Wild West show, which inspired others to begin professional rodeo events.

The 1890’s
As the traditional western lifestyle began to disappear, rodeos grew in popularity. Thus began professional rodeo competitions.

1904
A black cowboy named Bill Picket received national attention with his bulldogging exhibition, and steer wrestling came to be an integral part of rodeo competitions.

1922
Tex Austin created a premier event in Madison Square Garden with the Madison Square Garden Rodeo, and brought the event back into prominence after World War I nearly sent rodeos into oblivion.

1929
Uniform rules were formulated and the Rodeo Association of America (RAA) was established. This was the way in which to determine champions within the separate rodeo events.

1936
A group of cowboys founded the Cowboy Turtles Association, to demand fair play in rodeo competitions. They had just succeeded in staging a walkout and getting their promoter to come to an agreement with them.

1945
The Cowboy Turtles became the Rodeo Cowboys Association and thus the modern sport of rodeo came to be.

1953
By this year, prize money for rodeos totaled around $2,491,856.

1975
Rodeos were as legitimate as any other sport now, and the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) oversaw all major rodeo events in the US.

1976
Tom Ferguson was the first rodeo competitor to win over $100,000 in a single year.

1989
The Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame opened. Many of the inductees were and are active in the sport of rodeo.

Today
Rodeo continues to be a popular sport throughout the United States, and will continue entertaining the public for many years to come.