EDITORS NOTE: This is the second in aseries of four articles recounting thecolorful history of the National WesternStock Show, Rodeo and Horse Show, whichcelebrates its 100th birthday in 2006.

When he sold his first 4-Hclub calf at the NationalWestern in 1945, 10-year-old Bob Dorsey of Eaton,

Colo., said to himself, “Geez! I’llnever see that kind of money again!”Showing livestock in the secondquarter-century of the NationalWestern was a family affair and theDorseys’ experience was typical.“When we began showing in the1940s, we were little guys without alot of fancy equipment,” Bobrecalls. “We brought our cattle tothe show in an old farm truck. Wejust had little old curry combs,Scotch combs they were called,and you had to stand in lineforever to get into the washracks.” Grooming show cattle wasdifferent in those days. “Themore hair the better,” accordingto Bob. “ We didn’t clip anythingexcept the head and tail.” Theywere really moving up in theworld when they brought mom’s hairdryer to the show to fluff up those woollyHerefords. Of today’s elaborate groomingpractices Bob says, “Now days it’s just likea woman at the beauty shop.”

Bob and his brother showed calvesoften. They each collared a strugglingcritter one year in the Catch-A-Calfcontest and won ribbons with them thenext January. The family stayed in Denverduring the Stock Show but the boysmade fast trips home to compete in

sports, hastening back because the showwas a place to learn about livestock andshowmanship. “If you don’t go to theshow and learn something, you shouldhave stayed home and chopped weeds,”Bob says. And he was learning. In 1952 he

was judgedthe championjuniorshowman. Hewas wrongabout prices,though. In 1958his reservechampionHerefordbrought morethan twice whathis 1945 calf had.

The Dorseyswere part of a hostof people who havehelped make theNational WesternStock Show, Rodeoand Horse Show anenduring institution.Begun in 1906, theStock Show quicklybecame popular withstock growers, horseexhibitors and thepeople of Denver. Theshow grew dramaticallyduring its first 25years, weatheringblizzards, livestockdisease epidemics andfinancial struggles tobecome “the West’smost useful livestock

event.” More exhibitors came to Denvereach January, the show played a growingrole in breed improvement and thecrowds seemed to swell every year. Thenext quarter-century, however, would testits staying power. The Depression wouldbe an uphill slog and though World WarII would prove the show’s importance inlivestock breeding and meat production,it also brought price controls and

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By Keith and Cheryl Chamberlain

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The National Western opened its second quarter-century by adding rodeo to its bill of fare andcelebrated it with its program covers.

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shipping restrictions.Under solid leadership,the National Westernnever faltered and whenthe post-war boomarrived it would usher inthe best years the Januaryevent had yet seen. This isthe story of the StockShow during the eventfulyears from 1931 to 1955.

Grizzled Ranchers andBulls at the Brown

Cattle have always beenat the heart of the NationalWestern, and breedimprovement has been oneof its major contributions tothe livestock industry.Hereford, Angus andShorthorn were the onlybovine breeds appearing at theStock Show from 1931 to1955 and Hereford was thepowerhouse breed, winninggrand champion steer honors19 times in 25 years. Thefamiliar red-and-whites, nativesof England, were first importedaround the turn of the lastcentury. Along with Angus andShorthorn, they quickly shouldered asidethe traditional Longhorn, which was astough on the table as it was on the trail.“You had the Hereford and Angus cattleover there that specialized in marblingand good carcasses,” says Dan Green,publisher of the Record Stockman, a toplivestock industry newspaper. “Thewestern U.S. was largely settled withHereford bulls, the East with Angusbulls,” he says, hence, the dominance ofHerefords at the National Western.

The founders of the National Westerntried to promote cattle that could thriveto produce top quality meat in the aridWest and they succeeded. By 1955, theRocky Mountain News reported that,“Denver packers get more choice cattlethan any other major market in thecountry. In the six months ending Oct.31, 1955, government graders rated 76.4percent of the Denver killed beef aschoice.” The founders had also hoped to

foster a market in Denver where westernstock growers could sell their animalsand here again they were successful.Livestock valued at $1.7 million was soldin just two days at the 1931 show andthe Denver Union Stock Yards processedover three and a half million head ofstock that year, 1.9 million of them fromColorado. That number reached fourmillion by 1933 and held steady throughthe Depression. By the end of the decade,the Denver Union Stock Yards advertisedthat, “Livestock Production and Fatteningis the West’s Largest Industry.” Thenumbers rose further during World WarII. In 1944 alone, the stockyards handled70,000 carloads of cattle, up from 2,500in 1881. In the early 1950s, $270 millionworth of livestock was sold annually inthe state, about a million dollars worth

for each market day. Agricultureand meatpacking accounted fornearly half of Colorado’s incomein 1952.

Cattle at the Stock Show fallinto two broad categories:commercial livestock andbreeding animals. Feeder andfat cattle comprise thecommercial sector. At StockShow time in January feedersteers are approaching oneyear old and weigh around500 pounds. Commercialfeed lots and 4-H clubs aremajor buyers of these calves.During the 1930s and ‘40s,Colorado Herefordsconsistently won the class,and a few big cattle industrynames appear often on thelist of winners, amongthem Fred DeBerard,William Sidley and JosefWinkler, all of Colorado.

Fat cattle are abouttwo years old at StockShow time and ready forslaughter. After a good

run in this class from 1931 to1937, Angus gave way to Herefords,which won every year except two until1955. A.H. Schmidt of Missouri and Karland Jack Hoffman of Iowa took hometwo-thirds of the blue ribbons for fatcattle during those years. These primecattle often attracted quite a bit ofattention and in 1934, the Linder Packingand Provision Company of Denverbought the grand champion carload of fatsteers and sent 20 pounds of prime rib toPresident Franklin Roosevelt for hisWhite House birthday dinner.

In the breeding animal divisions, bullswere often the big stars. Stock Show bullssold for more than new automobiles in1939, but a notable pair at the 1945 saletopped them all. Describing the sale, theRocky Mountain News reported: “In thesmoke-filled sales pavilion crowded tothe rafters with Hereford buyers from 18states, spectators caught their breath asDan Thornton of Gunnison, broke an all-time world record with sale of a bull TTTriumphant 29th for $50,000.” Minutes

A brand inspector at work in the Stock Yards duringthe 1946 Stock Show.

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later, Triumphant’s son, TT Regent, alsocrossed the block at $50,000.

The headline-making bulls tooklodgings at the Brown Palace Hotel,which rolled out the same red carpettrodden by royalty and other tony gueststo welcome the father and son pair. Hotelmanager Harry Anholt explained that theidea “was to give the folks who can’t visitthe Stock Show a chance to look at$50,000 worth of bull.” The News hadfun with the story. On January 20th,readers found a photo of a wary-eyed TTTriumphant being lead into the hotel byThornton, while the hotel’s manager heldthe door to welcome the bovine. “Goodgosh,” quipped a rancher quoted in thepaper, “I couldn’t get a reservation at thishotel, but a bull can.” Another replied,“Well, it takes a lot of bull to get in here.”

Their stay was a mere eight hours.Unlike other guests, the critters couldn’tslip out of their fur coats and the hotelatrium was just too hot for bulls attiredfor Gunnison’s winter nights. They weresoon back at the Stock Show and theBrown escaped with only a soiled orientalrug. When the TTs left Denver, they tookup duties in Maryland and Michigan,proof that the National Western wasmaking big contributions to breedingprograms far beyond the West. Otherbulls also went for high prices that year,with one carload of 103 Herefordsfetching $85,000. By 1955 the showboasted the largest number of prize bullsfor sale of any show in the country.

A close look at Dan Thornton’s bullsreveals an interesting detour in beefbreeding: the short reign of the “beltbuckle” Hereford. How this craze forstumpy legs came and went is a casestudy in the role of stock shows.Beginning in the 1940s, trend-settingbreeders promoted animals that were“closer and closer to the ground,”according to Dan Green. “You have leg oflamb but you don’t have leg of beef,” sobreeders figured if they could geneticallyselect for short legs, less of an animal’sgrowth would be wasted on its non-edible legs. Lead by Quaker Oats’Wyoming Hereford Ranch, they selectedbulls that would throw short-leggedoffspring. The style caught on and by the

early 1950s show cattle had a decidedlydwarfish look.

Ranchers eventually put an end to thefad. “In western range country, which iswhere the real big numbers in the cattleindustry come from, you’ve got all kindsof cactus and sagebrush and garp outthere and those low slung animals gethung up on that stuff and get diseasesand everything under the sun,” says DanGreen. “The final arbiter of the trends iswhat works out on the western range.The grizzled ranchers who come to theStock Show can look at an animal andsay, ‘That one’s too close to the ground.He’s gonna’ drag on the sagebrush andbe sick all the time,’ or they’ll say, ‘Thatone’s way too big, he can’t make it outon the range on my ranch.’” Puttingfashion aside, by the mid-1950sranchers were buyinglonger-legged bulls frombreeders who had stuckwith the traditional-sizedanimals. Prize winnersbegan getting higher thana stockman’s belt buckleagain.

“Our Place isJust a Farm.”

Livestock fashionsmay come and go butyoung people have beena big part of the NationalWestern from the start.In 1906 students fromColorado Agriculturaland Mining College inFort Collins, nowColorado StateUniversity, took grandchampion steerhonors. Over the next30 years, ColoradoA & M, the Universityof Nebraska, theKansas AgriculturalCollege and theUniversity of Illinois all won blueribbons with their steers, hogs and lambs.Youth divisions at the National Westernwere inaugurated in 1919 in response tofederal laws encouraging young people toseek livelihoods in agriculture and stock

growing. In the 1930s, the NationalWestern began to incorporate 4-H Boysand Girls Clubs into the show and in1941 included the Future Farmers ofAmerica and created the junior livestockshow. It has been key to the Stock Show’seducational mission ever since.

The top quality steers that are shownby the kids at the National Western todayoccupy a middle ground betweenexpensive breeding stock and moremoderately priced commercial cattle. The4-H clubs buy promising feeder calves atthe show and the kids spend the next 12months preparing them for the ring.When they return they command a lot ofattention and capture headlines like thisone from the Rocky Mountain News in1947: “$200,000 in Prize MoneyPocketed by Kid Farmers.” Plump, wellmannered and curried to perfection, the

Don Harkness and Small Fry receive their award fromNational Western General Manager John T. Caine, III,at the 1952 show. Ranchers soon put an end to the“belt buckle” Hereford craze.

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steers are paraded by their hopefulowners who have trained inshowmanship. Even though they’rebound for slaughter, prices for thesesteers can rise into the stratosphere asbidders vie for the honor of buying topanimals.

Bidding for thegrand championsteer at the 1931show was furiousand when it wasover, 14-year-oldMasa Matsutani ofPaxton, Neb., hadsold his steer,Stubby Maru, for 85cents a pound.“Japanese Lad, Kingof the Show, Modestover Honors,”proclaimed TheDenver Post. “Whencrowds throng to thestall where Masa sitson a bale of straw,guarding his prizewinner, the lad smilesmodestly, answeringquestions withmonosyllable politeness,” the Post wenton. “We don’t live on a ranch, our placeis just a farm,” Masa said. Peanuts, anAngus steer shown by Frank McKenneyof King City, Mo., took top honors thenext year, while in 1939, another Angus,Flash, captured the blue ribbon. Topprice for any grand champion steerduring the period went to a Herefordshown by the kids from FatherFlanagan’s Boy’s Home of Omaha, Neb.Their prize winner brought $3.40 apound in 1953.

In 1935 the National Westerninaugurated the 4-H Catch-A-CalfContest and the event quickly became aperennial crowd pleaser. That year, 10calves and 20 boys (girls didn’t get in onthe fun until 1974) were turned loose inthe arena and the ensuing mayhemprovided guests with the “spontaneoushumor unique to unrehearsed events.”Contestants had to catch a calf, halter itand lead the balky critter to an exit.Then the real work began. Over the next

year the boy fed and cared for hisgrowing calf, kept financial records andreported by monthly letter to thesponsor who had donated it. When theboys returned the following year theircalves were judged on how well

they had grown. A prize ribbon provedthat the lessons of animal husbandry hadbeen learned and conferred seriousbragging rights. In 1955 the “HeiferWrangle” was added for youngstersbelonging to the Future Farmers ofAmerica.

The show included more than justcattle. Swine and sheep breed showswere an integral part of the Stock Showduring its second quarter-century.Among the porkers were Poland Chinas,Berkshires, Hampshires, Durocs andChester Whites. Sheep breeds at theshow included Southdown, Rambouillet,Corriedale, Columbia, Hampshire andSuffolk. These smaller animals wereperfectly suited to young exhibitorsliving on family farms and 4-H kids inparticular did very well with fat hogsand lambs.

Purebreds, Cow Poniesand a Curious Weddin’

When the National Western was born,every ranch and farm ran on horsepower. The working horse was the

backbone of thelivestock and agricultureindustries. By 1931 thatwas all changing as theworking horse wasbeing pushed to thesidelines. Farm andranch machinerypowered by theinternal combustionengine was a noveltyback in 1906, butsuch contraptionswere revolutionizingthe industry whenthe Silver Jubileerolled around.Purebred Percheronsand Belgians, as wellas grade drafthorses without apedigree, wereshown in Denver

until 1941, then disappeared, thoughthey would return in later decades. Muleshad gone into eclipse even earlier, beingdropped after 1931. They would one daystage their own comeback to the delightof mule enthusiasts and the public.

Though blue-collar horses were onleave of absence for a time, fancy showhorses that never pulled a harrow orworked a steer continued to be a big partof the program. Show horse classesfeatured saddle horses, harness horsesand hunters and jumpers. Saddle classesshowcased horses suited for pleasureriding along bridle paths or countrylanes and many featured three- and five-gaited horses. Harness horses includedroadster and trotter classes pullingcarriages and buggies. Style, grace and an“easy way of going” were essential tosuccess at the show. Audiences weretreated to many a fancy turnout as fineharness horses drew varied conveyancesaround the arena at a lively clip. Huntersand jumpers from the fox hunt andsteeplechase tradition provided thrills foraudiences as the big horses circled the

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Einar Johnson poses proudly with her Hereford steerat the 1945 Stock Show. Youngsters have always beena big part of the National Western.

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arena, clearing jump after jump.In 1944, these stylish equines moved

over to make room for the working cowhorse when stock horse classes became aregular event. Such horses “must beuseful for stock yard work, shownat gaits necessary for such workand it will be necessary to openand close the gate” advised theprogram. Stock horse reining andcutting contests were also popularwith audiences.

The horse breed shows thatare such an important part of theNational Western today began inthis period. Palominos were firstshown in 1938 and QuarterHorses arrived in 1944. Thispopular breed is shorter butmore muscular than Morgans,Arabians or Thoroughbredsand the Quarter Horse canreally fly for short distances.The jackrabbit starts make it“very well suited for ranch-type work where you’regathering and cutting cattle,”according to Randy Witte,publisher of WesternHorseman Magazine. Arabiansand Thoroughbreds joinedthe show not long after the“stock horses” and by 1952there were 250 horse showexhibitors participating in morethan 80 classes.

In 1931 show organizers arranged anunlikely marriage. The society maidenperched sidesaddle on her satinypurebred was betrothed to the denim-clad cowboy who straddled a hoss ofuncertain lineage. They were hitched inthe grandly decorated Stadium Arena onthe evening of January 19, 1931, with5,000 close friends in attendance. Thefamilies of bride and groom mingledamiably as bronc riding, steer wrestling,fine harness and five-gaited saddle classesintertwined like rose vines. The crowdapproved and the newspapers achievednew heights of hyperbole, focusing onthe dissimilarities of the bridal couple.This from The Denver Post : “The princelythorobreds of saddle and harness arebeautiful and refined, but it takes the

unshorn warhorse with the red-hot hoofsand rolling eyeballs to crash the gate,pack the grandstands, hang up the S. R. O.sign. The elite of society filled every boxin the diamond circle, and the exhibit ofhigh-stepping saddlers and drivers was

excellent, but the palm of popular victorymust be accorded to the buckaroo, thebroncho and the big, romping steer thatfairly loves to ‘rassle.’” Urging patrons tomaintain at least some measure ofdecorum as events whipsawed betweenwild and woolly and refined, the programsuggested that “applause from theaudience is appreciated by themanagement but loud disapproval of thejudges’ choice is unpleasant for spectatorsand judges.”

This marriage of contrasts lasted fordecades and by all accounts was quite a

happy one. True, horse show partisansnow and then fondly recalled the dayswhen they had the arena to themselvesand rodeo enthusiasts did sometimesallow as how they found horse showclasses a bit tame. “The horse show isnice amusement, but to some extent, it

must be admitted, it lacksthe punch of a knock-downand drag-’em-out rodeo,”opined a Western Farm Lifewriter who was definitely inthe latter camp. Theoccasional bout of colicruffled the marital bliss, as atthe 1953 show when rodeoclown Buddy Heatoncommandeered a bloodedjumper and rode the priceymount over an impromptucourse, clearing every rail.Horse show folks were notamused, but calm was restoredwhen Heaton apologized andpromised henceforth to confinehis clowning to the rodeo side ofaffairs.

Things also got a little livelywhen the occasional rodeo bulltook a wrong turn in thealleyways of the shared barn.“This one bull just crashed rightthrough the gate and he’s runningaround in the horse show barnand all these people are trying toget their horses ready for the show.

It was just chaos. Everything is flying andpeople are jumping up on the walls,”recalls Sandy Dennehy, a long-timecompetitor in jumping events during thecombined shows. But overall, she says, itworked. “You know, in a way it was funbecause it was an experience that none ofus had the rest of the year. We got toknow a few of the guys that did therodeo and we always enjoyed thebucking horses and bulls.”

Rodeo and all, Society Nightcontinued to be an annual highlight.Denver’s elite filled flag draped boxes inthe Stadium Arena, adding glamour andhigh fashion to the show. They held boxparties as photographers’ flashes poppedand journalists filled their note pads withfashion details. The Rocky Mountain News

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Catch-A-Calf action at the 1954 Stock Show. Whenhe gets it haltered, the real work of caring for thiscalf begins.

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reported in 1931 that, “Maids andmatrons, debutantes and dowagers andtheir escorts filled the flag-decked boxes.Riding togs and sport attire, formalevening frocks and tall silk hats, made acolorful panorama. The horse show ... isthe event that ushers in the spring hats.Last night there was an abundance ofsmart straw chapeaux in all colors of therainbow, draped with soft curling littleplumes.” There were satin and velvetgowns and plenty of fur, includingmink, ermine, gray squirrel, fox,muskrat, beaver, seal, skunk, sable,leopard and caracul.

Changes in dress styles at the showmirrored society at large and an informaltrend began in the ‘40s with some evendonning blue jeans on Society Night. ANews article in 1950 declared that“Society women still are clinging to theirwartime casualness in fashion ... andthey did not wear their brightest spring

hats, as was their custom in prewaryears.” The dramatic entrance hadapparently lost none of its cachet,however, as “society parties thronged in10 minutes late, as is their usual custom.They found their seats just as theexciting and noisy grand march came toa climax” reported the paper. Mink coatsand jeweled hats still mingled with bluejeans and Stetsons in the early ‘50s whenfans settled in to watch the horse showand rodeo.

Dynamite, Bedspringsand Jumping Beans

With legendary announcer Abe Leftonat the microphone and such greats as EarlThode and Pete Knight scrunching downtheir hats to climb aboard wily broncs,rodeo came to the National Western in1931. “A yip-ee-ee, yip-ee-ee, whichmust have been heard as far north as oldCheyenne and as far south as MonteVista, merrily awakened long-slumberingechoes in the big stockyards arenaSaturday afternoon. It came from theleather lungs of a bow-legged, tougher-than-rawhide wrangler astride thehurricane deck of a four-legged devildisguised as a horse,” reported TheDenver Post. That rider was aboard a

bucking horse from the string of stockcontractors Verne Elliott and EddieMcCarty, whose top stock put Denver onthe cowboys’ annual round of house calls.Elliott continued supplying rodeo stockfor the National Western until 1957.Rodeo events that first year would befamiliar to fans of the sport today. Cowwaddies competed in bareback andsaddle bronc riding, calf roping, steerwrestling and Brahma steer riding. Yes,steers. Those gnarly Brahma bullsweren’t on the dance card until later.

Purses were paltry during thoseDepression years. Bareback broncriders and steer wrestlers competedfor an $840 pot, with winners in thedaily contests risking their necks for amere $35. Saddle bronc riders andcalf ropers vied for a chance at firstplace day money of $100, anddivided $1,875 for the entire show.

Purses actually shrank during the “DirtyThirties,” as businesses strugglingthrough the Depression reduced theircontributions to Stock Show events.Things eventually improved and by 1946The Denver Post could declare, “RodeoWinners to Whack up $18,000 CashSaturday Night.” In 1955 purses were$5,400 plus added money fromcontestants’ entry fees.

The National Western joined a five-city western rodeo circuit in 1939, amove that gave its rodeo greaterprominence. Being the first major rodeoof the year had certain advantagesaccording to Jim Shoulders, a rodeosuperstar who competed here in the1940s and ‘50s. In a recent interview hepointed out that, “Bein’ the first, you hadtime to kind of heal up from the fall. Allthe good hands and an awful lot of theothers, even the middle of the roadcontestants, were always at Denver ‘causethey hadn’t run out of money yet. You feltlike if you won some money in Denver itwould help you get set up for the year.”Then he modestly added, “and it wasalways pretty handy ‘cause I won a little,”something of an understatement from afive-time All-Around Champion, four-time Bareback Riding Champion andseven-time Bull Riding Champion.Championship saddles, belt buckles and

While an enthusiastic crowd looks on, Mrs. JerryAronoff of Denver presents first place honors in theHackney Stake to Sherelee Marrs of Omaha at the1953 show. Horse show action has always captivatedcrowds at the National Western.

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trophies for the previous year’scompetition were presented at theNational Western Rodeo and between1949 and 1959 Jim Shoulders cartedenough of those out of town to fill a barn.

For all these reasons, Denver attractedthe top professional cowboys, amongthem All-Around Champions Earl Thode,Homer Pettigrew, Gerald Roberts, CaseyTibbs and Bill Linderman, in addition toJim Shoulders. As it gained prominence,the National Western’s rodeo grew. Fromaround 100 entries in its early years, therodeo grew to 125 contestants in 1940,jumped to 200 at war’s end, then shot to350 by 1955.

“Every trade has its own peculiarvocabulary and none is more picturesqueand colorful than that of the cowboy,” aprogram feature entitled “The Lingo ofthe Cowpoke” explained. Grabbin’ theapple was clutching the horn of thesaddle to keep from being thrown, adefinite no-no. A dog-fall is the steerwrestler’s term for putting a steer on theground with his feet under him.The throw is not complete, thetutorial explained, until the steeris flat on his side with all fourfeet out. “Hoolihanning- leapingforward and alighting on thehorns of a steer in a manner toknock him down” withouthaving to “twist the handlebars”was a cardinal sin. Everybuckaroo, “from the Spanish,Vaquero, meaning cowboy,”hoped to romp on a highroller, a horse that leaps highinto the air when bucking.Finally, no serious rodeo fanwanted to be a tenderfoot.“That’s what you are if youdid not know the meaning ofthese words,” the programchided.

Would-be rodeo starsmight have beenencouraged to read in theprogram that amateurswere allowed to enter aslong as “they show class anddress in full cowboy or cowgirl costume.”“Rowdyism or quarreling with judges orofficials” was forbidden and “undesirable

characters” need not apply. Practicewould have been more important thanwardrobe and manners put together.According to Jim Shoulders, “Buckin’stock’s not supposed to be real gentle,”and when the gate swings open, “Youdon’t have time to think ‘I’ve gotta turnmy toes out, I’ve gotta squeeze the riggin’with my hand and squeeze with my legsand move my body as the horse moves.’You try to get all that to come natural,kind of automatic.” Easier said than done,probably. As to what else to expect,Shoulders adds, “Well, sometimes it’s fun,sometimes its hell. It all depends on theshape you’re in and the animal you’reridin’. If everything’s right, why, it’s funbut if anything’s wrong, it ain’t much fun.”Then he cautions, “If you get to theoutside of the spin on a bull, or down inthe well on the inside of a spin ... you’rein trouble.” Another bit ofunderstatement. For the contestantthinking how long can eight seconds be,a final note from the champ: “If you’reridin’ ’em easy and good, why, it don’t

seem like it’s very long. But if you’re in astorm, that eight seconds can get to be along time. When you’re layin’ under oneand he’s trompin’ around on you, thatseems like it takes a long time, too.”

Newspaper writers also did their partto discourage amateurs. After hearing JimShoulders’ advice, any armchair cowboywith a lick of sense would have ditchedwhat remained of his aspirations when heread this headline: “Riders Smeared AllOver Arena as Broncos Kick Open RodeoHere.” Perhaps as good as anything in thefanciful genre of the newsie, however,was this mirthful passage by a Post writerdescribing the regimen of one famousbucking horse: “Five-Minutes-to-Midnight has been doing a little training... by adhering to a diet of dynamite, oldbedsprings and Mexican jumping beans.”

A Cayuse Named MidnightThe most popular personality at the

1932 Stock Show wasn’t a grandchampion steer, a society belle or acowboy- it was a bucking horse namedMidnight. Foaled on the Cottonwood

Ranch in Alberta, Canada,in 1914, he was the son ofa Thoroughbred mare and aMorgan/Percheron stallion.He grew to a robust 15 1/2hands and in fighting trimtipped the scales at 1,300pounds. Ranch owner JimMcNab figured him for acowhorse and broke him tothat line of work. One daythe horse threw McNab, thenreturned to work as if nothinghad happened. Things seemedjust fine for a few days, thenhe had another bucking fit.He’d gotten the pitching ideainto his head. Midnight foundhimself out of work after hethrew one of McNab’s top handsand knocked him unconscious.When the cowpoke came to hepromptly quit. It was starting todawn on McNab that this horsejust didn’t care for ranch life. Itwas clear, however, that he had

other talents. Word got around thatMidnight was quite the bucker and cow

This 1931 Denver Post cartoon captures the spirit ofthe combined horse show and rodeo.

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waddies started showing up at the ranchwanting to give him a try. It wasn’t longbefore he was a regular at local buckingcontests where he honed his skill.

Midnight’s life as a professionalentertainer began in 1924 when McNabsold him to a rodeo stock contractor.He worked for the Alberta StampedeCompany until they went broke in1928. Maybe it was the medical bills.In an irony that must have had thehorse chuckling to himself, his nextowner was a Wild West Show. If wildwas what they wanted, Midnight gave itto them. He busted up so manycowboys that he worked himself out ofa job and was sold again. Under theguidance of his new employers, VerneElliott and Eddie McCarty, he soon hadthe same drawing power as JackDempsey or Joe Louis. One rodeohistorian figured “probably no other

bucking horse that ever lived packed asmany people in the seats ... as didMidnight.” His career path was leadingtoward Denver.

Midnight rode a tide of good pressinto town in January of 1931. Localheadline writers dubbed him the “DevilHorse” and a “Champion Bucker.” Hedelivered all the show’s promoters couldhave hoped for, grabbing headlines,thrilling audiences and filling theStadium Arena at rodeo after rodeo.Movie actor and rodeo rider Jack Irelanddrew Midnight for the first saddle broncevent. “Where is this here outlaw,Midnight? When I get through with him,he’ll think it’s tea time, ” he boasted onarrival in Denver. Midnight disposed ofIreland on the first jump out of the chute,tossing him in one second flat. PaddyRyan drew the horse the next day andfared no better. Dusting himself off, hedeclared “If I ever draw that hoss again ata rodeo, I’m going to get on the first trainout of town.” The next day, Bill Till madeit to the second buck but was carried outon a stretcher with a twisted spine. MelStonehouse managed to stay aboard forthree seconds, besting the combined

times of his three predecessors. In amatinee performance on day five, FernieHubbard was tossed in one second andcarried away unconscious.

At that evening’s rodeo, organizersannounced that Midnight had a minorinjury and couldn’t appear. “A roof-shaking boo went up from 5,000throats,” according to one newsaccount, and organizers quicklyreconsidered. Leo Murray probablywished they hadn’t. He stayed up forfive seconds before biting the dust.Midnight got the next day off andwhen the final rodeo came around,the tally for the week stood atMidnight six, cow waddies zip.When the gate swung open thatnight Cliff Helm was aboard, butnot for long. He lasted five secondsand was knocked unconscious forhis trouble. Midnight left the arenaundefeated, his seven would-beriders for the stock show havingracked up total saddle time of

only 17 seconds. To cap his week,Denver’s biggest celebrity was awarded a“jewel-encrusted halter” by FrederickBonfils, publisher of the Post.

Unlike many other great buckers,Midnight used power instead of tricks tothrow his riders. As Denver audiencessaw, many were blown out of the saddleon the first jump when Midnight camedown with a spine-jolting thud on hisforefeet and executed a double kick withhis hind quarters still high in the air. Itwas the second kick that did it. Thecowboys were punched in the belly onemoment and slapped from behind thenext. The next thing they knew theywere eating dirt.

Midnight was a good sport about itall. He occasionally approached a fallencowboy and gave him a sniff, as if to saythere were no hard feelings. He stoodquietly for saddling and anyone could gosafely into his stall. He seemed especiallyfond of Mrs. Elliott, wife of stockcontractor Verne Elliott, happily takingthe lumps of sugar she offered. He posedfor a photograph with a Denver womanlooking more like an amiable old stablehorse than a fearsome outlaw. Like manya traveling sports star, he was particular

The fabled Midnight, shown here in one of his gentlermoments, was famous for his decidedly ungentle wayof tossing cow waddies at the Stock Show.

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about his roommates and might kick thestuffing out of any horse besides his palsInvalid or Five-Minutes-to-Midnight.When one of these bosom friendschecked into an adjacent stall he would“snort and squeal and kick until he brokeout and got to his pal’s side.”

Midnight was actually nearing the endof his career when he appeared inDenver. A bone disorder in his front feetbegan to rob him of some of his snap andtwo or three top cowboys began toqualify on him. Rather than see himridden down, Elliott retired the horsewith his pride intact. He was put out topasture at Platteville, Colo., where hedied in 1936. The Horse Show andRodeo program for the 1937 Stock Showfeatured a full page tribute to Midnight.“There is a note of sadness in this rodeo.In the hearts of those cowboysperforming in the arena there is thememory of a dead horse. He was thegreatest bucking horse of them all.Cowboys both feared and loved him.In his prime, no man ever conqueredhim. He was a sportsman through andthrough. May he rest in that Nirvana,where great horses must go.” The crowdobserved a minute of silent tribute toMidnight at the opening rodeoperformance of the 1937 Stock Show.The remains of the legendary bronc, anine-time champion, rest today at theNational Cowboy and Western HeritageMuseum in Oklahoma City.

Free Ponies, Ten-cent Hotdogsand No Vacancy Signs

On January 11, 1931, The DenverPost had exciting news for youngreaders: the paper was going to giveaway a pony. “A beautiful live pony,with a made-to-order saddle and a finebridle, will be the main award for thebest cowboy or cowgirl costume. He isnamed Noon Edition, after the earlyedition of THE DENVER POST. And heis just about the prettiest, smartestlittle fellow you ever saw. Cowboyhats, shirts, spurs, lariats and a lot ofBaur’s famous candy will be among theother awards. Also, every boy or girlwho appears in a creditable costumewill be given a FREE TICKET to the

mammoth rodeo at the Stock Show.”The Post further instructed, “Wear anysort of western costumes you like. Youwill be judged for the appropriatenessof your garb, spurs, guns, etc.” Thearticle concluded with thisencouragement: “That’s the wholestory, kids, You don’t have to registeror go thru any red tape. Just get yourcostumes ready and be on ChampaStreet in front of THE POST promptlyat 10 o’clock next Saturday morning.”

For days before the big contest thepaper ran photos of western-garbedyoungsters under the headline “TheyHope to Win Ponies.” Professionalcowboys in town for the rodeo were thejudges and their toughest task wasweeding out dude outfits. Levi pants andjackets, plaid shirts, boots, leather chaps,Stetson hats and spurs were deemed most

typically western. Sidney Unwin ofLafayette, Colo., took Noon Editionhome to become the first of manytickled youngsters who rode awayon prize ponies. At the 1949 contest,nine-year-old Patsy Sandifer ofEvergreen trumped even the Post’simaginative publicists. After six-year-olds Jimmy Lee Sheard of Kremmlingand Bonnie Christie of Rocky Fordwere declared the winners, Patsystepped out of the crowd to give oneof her own ponies to runner-upRosanne Wright of North Denverbecause she was so impressed with thesix-year-old’s courage in defeat.The Post’s junior rodeo is but one

example of the enthusiastic supportaccorded the Stock Show by theDenver press. A crescendo of newscoverage swelled in the weeks leadingup to the January extravaganza.Recognizing the Stock Show’simportance to the city, the Post in 1931editorialized, “Denver is privileged thisweek ... to be host to the Stockmen andtheir families. In expressing the city’sdelight at entertaining such fine people,THE DENVER POST’S only regret isthat they don’t visit us often enough.THE POST hopes the Stockmen won’thurry away when the Stock Show isended, but that they will stay with usfor a visit and come to see us often. Forwhatever benefits the Stockmenbenefits Denver, Colorado, and all theseRocky Mountain states.”

National Western General ManagerCourt Jones pointed out in a 1931press release that “The generoussupport of the press in this regionmakes the show possible, as there neveris a fund sufficient to make the show asuccess without large attendance.” It’slikely area residents would have comeout without much coaxing. The cattle,hogs, sheep and horses have alwaysfascinated city folks but there wasmuch more at the show to help banishthe mid-winter doldrums than just thecritters. There was the horse show androdeo, the bustle in the stockyards, theexhibits of farm and ranch equipmentand plenty of colorful people watching.

At the horse show and rodeo there

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Verne Elliott provided rodeo stock for the NationalWestern throughout its second quarter-century.

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were specialty acts like rodeo clownDave Campbell and the Denver MountedPolice drill team. There was worldchampion horseshoe pitching and trickand fancy riding. John Lindsey and hisbull Iron Ore were there, as were KenBoen and his Ol’ Gray Mare. Jacky thepolice dog performed an exhibition ofpolice work. “When he spots his manthere’s real excitement,” the programsaid, due perhaps to the fact that Jackywas a Doberman. Pony and draft horsehitches pulled fancy wagons as theStadium Arena resounded to music ofthe Denver Junior Police, BurlingtonRailroad and Shrine brass bands. Themost popular specialty performer in the1930s and ‘40s seems to have beenHomer Holcomb, the cowboy clown. Astring of trained animals accompaniedHomer to town, including Ferdinand thebull and a trick-mule namedParkukarkus. He also brought Mae West,though the program failed to specifywhat sort of critter she might have been.

If folks were hungry, the programsadvised them to “Pay No More” for

concessions than the prices printed. In1931 soda pop, lemonade, Cracker Jack,hot dogs and hamburgers cost 10 cents.The barbecue plate lunch was 50 centsand a turkey dinner could be had for 75cents. Prohibition was repealed in 1933and thirsty patrons the next Januarymight have been delighted to read in theprogram that “Visitors to the DenverStock Show this year can again, for thefirst time in years, enjoy the thrill of adrink of genuine Coors Beer - either thepopular 3.2 or the stronger Repeal Beer.”In 1941 a bottle of the suds went for 20cents at the show. Even with the rise inprices that set in after WWII, soft drinksand Cracker Jack still cost only a dime.Hot dogs, alas, had gone up, promptingthis wry observation from the RockyMountain News in 1947: “With more thana half-million pounds of beef on display,people were wondering why they had topay a quarter for a hotdog.”

There was a deeper economicrelationship between the people ofDenver and the National Western thanconcession prices. City folks turned up atthe gate to pay their admission in spite ofhard economic times and they filled theseats in the Stadium Arena for ticketedperformances. Exhibitors’ entry fees wereusually consumed by the premiums paidto prize winners, so gate and ticket

income was vital to the show’s balancesheet. The Denver Chamber ofCommerce chipped in for livestockpremiums and was joined by the DenverClearing House Banks and a consortiumof hotels with contributions to rodeopurses. The city of Denver and the stateof Colorado also made annualappropriations to the show. Suchcontributions were often the differencebetween red ink and black for the show.

The Stock Show repaid the cityhandsomely with a big spike in businessevery January. Within a few years of itsdebut, the show was injecting $2 millioninto the city’s economy each year. By1955 the show was drawing so many outof town visitors that hotels were filled tocapacity and reservations had to be madeup to a year in advance. January’s hotelbookings rivaled those of August, thepeak month of the tourist season, andequaled June and July put together.Thanks to the nine-day show, Denverhotels made enough in January to paytheir taxes for the entire year. Roomswere so tight that the Record Stockmanurged readers who had friends in the cityto stay with them during the show sohotel rooms could be released for lessfortunate visitors. The convention andvisitors bureau put out a call forDenverites with extra space in theirhomes to take in Stock Show visitors.

January ranked third in sales for thecity’s retailers, exceeded only by theChristmas season in November andDecember. As the Record Stockmanreported just before the1943 show,“Denver’s merchants, businessmen andprofessional men extend a heartywelcome to visitors to the greatexhibition. Shelves emptied by therecord-breaking 1942 Christmas buyingseason have been refilled and a specialeffort has been made to have the newestand best merchandise available for thehost of Stock Show visitors. Many specialsales have been planned for next weekwhich should provide savings for out-of-town purchasers.”

In the late-1940s the relationshipbetween the National Western and thepeople of Denver helped solve a long-standing problem at the Stock Show:

City folks have always enjoyed everything from prize-winning livestock to exhibits of farm and ranchmachinery at the January extravaganza.

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crowded and inadequate facilities. Thepapers reported that another city wastrying to lure the Stock Show away witha $5 million stadium. “Lack of SpacePerils Denver Stock Show,” trumpeted aRocky Mountain News banner headlinein 1947. A bill was introduced in thelegislature to increase the state’s annualappropriation to the National Western.

“We Could Have SoldTickets at Any Price.”

The National Western had beenpinched for space since 1906 and thereason was a chronic lack of funds.Expenditures had a nasty tendency toeat up revenues and too often a yearwhen the show broke even wasconsidered a success. During itssecond quarter-century, the StockShow continued to receive regularassistance from the Denver UnionStock Yards for operating expensesand new barn and exhibit space. Amilestone for the National Western wasreached in 1945 when the ever-reliablecompany sold the Lamont Pavilion, the1909 Stadium Arena and the cattle washhouse to the show for a token price. Forthe first time, the National Western hadclear title to part of its facilities.

The Stadium Arena was still theonly venue for ticketed performancesby the late 1940s and it was packed forevery horse show and rodeoperformance. Box seats always sold outlong before opening day. In a typicalheadline, The Denver Post proclaimed“140,000 See 1949 Stock Show As CryGoes Up for More Space.” Thousandswere turned away during the ticketsale, the paper reported. “We couldhave sold tickets at any price - if we’dhad them,” lamented National WesternGeneral Manager John T. Caine, III.“The space problem has driven usalmost to distraction.”

It wasn’t only human visitors who werecrowded. A huge circus tent housed thefirst show, and canvas continued to provideshelter at the National Western for decades.Overflow cattle, 4-H and junior show andhorse show entries were routinelyquartered in tents. “It is a rotten shame tohouse these valuable animals in tents,

exposed to pneumoniaand cold. Thousand-dollar show animalshad to be housed in drafty tents, ” the localdailies despaired. Denver area farmers andstockmen took in show animals to helpease the shortage of stalls. The show builtmetal Quonset huts to house livestock,hardly an elegant solution.

The desperate need for new facilitieswas a perennial topic at meetings of theNational Western’s board of directors,and in the mid-1940s livestockexhibitors began contributing a portionof their sale proceeds to a buildingfund. Then National Western PresidentWilson McCarthy and Union StockYards President L.M. Pexton enlistedthe support of Denver Mayor BenStapleton to place a $1.5 million bondissue for construction of a huge newbuilding before the voters. The road toopening night in the Denver Coliseumwas strewn with funding hurdles,political wrangling and constructiondelays but the combined efforts ofStock Show supporters, Denvertaxpayers, and private businessovercame them all.

Denver’s business and communityleaders joined in the campaign to passthe bond issue and the Post and News

urged taxpayers vote yes. When theyarrived at the polls on May 20, 1947,voters were greeted by 4-H club kidswearing insignia arm bands. The hintprobably didn’t change the outcome, butit may have added to the margin ofvictory. The taxpayer-backed bonds wereapproved 49,523 to 35,659. At last, itseemed, there would be sufficient moneyto build the Stock Show’s first new venuein 40 years.

Then a snag. Quigg Newton waselected the new mayor on the same daythe bonds passed and he believed Denvertaxpayers should have a multi-purposefacility that could be used year-round,not just during the January show. Such astructure would cost a lot more than theamount approved by the voters. To helpdefray the additional cost, the city agreedto chip in another $510,000 worth ofengineering and labor. Even so, $700,000more would be needed. No bonds wouldbe issued, Mayor Newton said, unless

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It took the combined efforts of Stock Show boosters,taxpayers, business and government to build theColiseum, shown here during construction in 1950.

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livestock interests raised it.A committee of National Western

leaders, show exhibitors, meat packersand Union Stock Yards officials wasformed to raise $750,000. A city drivewould raise $500,000, primarily frombusiness contributors, Stock Showexhibitors would be responsible for$150,000 and the Stock Yards groupwould raise $100,000. The railroads,which had long given discounts toexhibitors shipping livestock to the show,joined in as well. The Colorado &Southern Railroad donated the land onwhich the Coliseum would sit while theUnion Pacific Railroad gave land for avast parking lot. This was to be a trulycooperative venture among the manyinterests who valued the Stock Show.

Ground was broken in September of1949 while fund raising was stillunderway. The project was massive forthe times. The Coliseum wouldencompass almost three acres centeredon a 30,000 square-foot arenasurrounded by seating for up to 11,000spectators. The arched roof required

5,400 tons of concrete and theplywood for the forms would havebuilt a small town. With constructiondelays, it wasn’t until 1951 that thestructure was completed and the cityquickly put it to use for ice skatingshows and sports events. In a finalpolitical twist, the city council namedit the Denver Coliseum. Stock Showfolks had hoped for a monikerincorporating “National Western” or“Stock Show.”

The National Western threw a realbash for its own opening night in thenew facility on January 10, 1952. Twohuge floral horseshoes, one made of1,000 Hawaiian orchids and anothermade with 7,000 Colorado carnations,greeted arriving guests. Four brass bandsenlivened the festivities, dignitariesentered in horse-drawn surreys and popmusic groups and TV and moviepersonalities performed. Following adedication address by Mayor Newton,“Denver’s Salute to the Soil” gotunderway. Organist Edna Hynes playedher original composition of that nameduring a 14-float parade. The livestockfloat highlighted Angus, Hereford andShorthorn cattle, while hogs, sheep andwool were represented by others. Sugarbeets, broom corn, peaches, flowers,pure seed and potatoes were the themes

of six more floats,and there were otherson forest and timberproducts andmarketing andgardening. FFA and4-H kids and theColorado A & MCollege wererepresented.Palominos,Arabians andQuarter Horsesparaded and theShrine PalominoPatrol put on ariding exhibition.

The Coliseumprovided a realboost to the

National Western. Now 50,000 morepeople could be accommodated duringthe 17 ticketed performances. Incomefrom ticket sales shot up 61percentduring the 1952 show. With completionthe next year of a large barn for rodeostock and show horses west of theColiseum, 500 more stalls were available.Half again as many breeding cattle, sheepand hogs as before could beaccommodated during the show. Vendorsof consumer and farm and ranchproducts filled booths along thepromenade surrounding the arena,swelling the number of commercialexhibitors’ booths to 112 and addingmore income.

Taxpayer contributions to theColiseum marked an important passagefor the National Western. After decades offinancial support, Denver dropped itsannual appropriation in 1953 and wasfollowed soon after by downtownbusinesses. A year later Colorado alsoeliminated its annual contribution. Theshow was on its own as it approached its50th birthday, but with the Depressionand World War II behind it and thespanking new Coliseum open, it wasbetter prepared than ever before to meetthe challenges that lay ahead. ■

Editor’s Note: Next year’s program willchronicle the National Western’s thirdquarter-century.

It was a long time coming and the National Westerncelebrated the vastness of the new Coliseum in grandstyle. Shown here are the entrants in the Best TenHead of Herefords class at the 1952 Stock Show.

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