Re: Bill Pickett

[William Russell Smith <rssmith@TENET.EDU>]

> Greetings group,  I need information on Bill Pickett, the well-known
> black cowboy who was elected to the Cowboy Hall of Fame in OK. City, OK.
> I need as complete biographical data as possible as:
> date of birth, place of birth, date of death, place where buried.  Some
> information on where he worked, his family both immediate and extended
> and any interesting ancedotes as may be available.
> Aaron Ball   aball@magellan.iquest.com

Aaron: Good topic you have there and as a historian and newspaper columnist
I'm always looking to add some biographical sketches for my education
column. So sit tight and read on for an account of Bill Pickett (this article
will appear in the Sweetwater Reporter News September 4, 1994. Free reprints
for educational or non-profit use).


           Bulldogger Bill Pickett: Famous Black Cowboy

By Russell Smith
Special Correspondent

      Steer wrestling is a popular rodeo event, but it owes its roots to
a frontier name, "bulldogging", and to a little black man from South Texas
named Bill Pickett. Bill Pickett is generally crediting with originating
the practice of bulldogging (wrestling a steer to the ground by grabbing its
nose or horns and hanging on until the animal falls to the ground).

     What made Bill Pickett so unusual was that he practiced bulldogging
in the true sense of the word origin. Originally in the Elizabethan
era bulldogs were used to fight bulls for amusement and they grabbed
hold of the upper lip of the animals in their grisly sport. Bill Pickett also
used his strong teeth in the same manner and would hold onto bulls or steers
until they fell to the ground.

    A lesser-known fact about Bill was that he was a good friend of the
famous Will Rogers and actor Tom Mix and for many years all three men
were close friends and performed together in exhibitions and rodeos
in America and around the world.

     Legend has it that Bill began his unorthodox method one day when he
grew disgusted at a bull that refused to go into the corral. He jumped from
his horse, grabbed the bull by the horns until the animal raised its head,
then Bill bit into the upper lip and let go with his hands. Dangling
alongside the bull, he let the animal drag him until it fell to the ground.

     Not much is known of Bill's early life. Apparently he was born about
in the late 1850s or early 1860s and he joined the 101 Ranch in Oklahoma at
the end of the 1890s. About forty years old at the time, Bill would spend
the rest of his life working for the ranch and died there in 1932.

     G.W. Miller was the rancher who founded the famous 101 ranch in 1871
when he and six men (including a black cowboy, Perry Britton, who was the
cook) saw the potential of land in the Cherokee Strip for cattle ranching.
Leasing 60,000 acres from the Cherokee Indians and later 100,000 acres from
the Ponca Indians, Miller built up a huge ranch which had over two hundred
cowboys by the time he died in 1903.

    After his three sons took over the ranch they decided to hold exhibition
rodeos (by that time most of the 101 hands were barred from amateur rodeos
because of their great skills) and in 1905 a great show was held for the
annual National Editors' Convention meeting in nearby Guthrie, Oklahoma.

    The crowd was enormous and 35 charter passenger trains couldn't hold
all those who went to the ranch. Bill Pickett held a special place on
the rodeo program in which it read: "The Wonderful Negro "Pickett"
Throwing Wild Steer by the Nose with His Teeth."

     The Miller Rodeo moved on to other places in the next few years,
playing in arenas and coliseums across the United States. One of the most
lively performances happened in New York City and Bill Pickett and his
friend Will Rogers figured prominently in the ruckus that brought down the
first show.

     As Bill chased the first steer it was crazed by the noise of the crowd
in Madison Square Garden and bolted up into the stands. Never at a loss
for action, Bill jumped his horse up into the stands amongst the screaming
people and grabbed the steer by the lip. Will Rogers, who was Bill's partner
in the act quickly roped the steer by the leg (using tricks he perfected
on the 101 ranch) and dragged the steer and Bill back down the stairs
into the arena.

    Another memorable show happened in Mexico City in 1908 and Bill
Pickett gave the performance of his life. The Mexican fans were not too
thrilled about gringo rodeos anyway and when Joe Miller (son of G.W. Miller)
insulted the Mexican's pride by saying Bill could throw two bulls in the
time a Mexican bullfighter could throw one, the stage was set for an ugly crowd.

    The Mexican bullfighters refused to try to match Bill, but instead
made a bet of 5,000 pesos that Bill could not hold onto a bull for five
minutes. Bill accepted the challenge and the event began in front of thousands
of hostile Mexicans.

   Bill's horse was severely gored by the bull, but Bill hung on even after
Mexicans threw and hit him with beer bottles. Finally after the Mexican timer
failed to ring the bell after six minutes the 101 crew raced into the ring
and roped the bull. The angry crowd threw everything they could find at
the rodeo performers and only the timely arrival of a troop of mounted
Federales saved the cowboys from further harm. Bill was bruised and battered,
but he and his horse survived and Miller collected his 5,000 pesos.

    In 1914 Bill and his friends would go on to perform in England in
a command performance for King George V and Queen Mary. But after World War II
broke out suddenly their horses and vehicles were confiscated by the English
government. Returning to America the Miller Rodeo would never again regain
its past glory.

    Animal activists of the 1920s prohibited Bill from his bulldogging
method and of the three Miller sons, only Zach was still alive by the end
of the decade. In 1932 Zach Miller's closest and dearest friend was Bill
Pickett, now over seventy years old and the sole survivor of the original 101
bunch.

   In early April of 1932 Bill went to the corral to rope a feisty sorrel
and the big horse reared up and kicked Bill in the head. Dazed from the
blow, Bill was stomped and kicked by the big horse. Suffering from a
fractured skull, Bill still showed his grit as he hung to life for eleven
days before finally succumbing April 21, 1932.

   They buried Bill Pickett in a grave carved out of soapstone high on
a hill near the White Eagle Monument. The man who made a living out of
his exceptional athletic skills and showmanship was mourned by all who had
known him. His good friend Will Rogers would die three years later in a
plane crash in Alaska with Wiley Post and Tom Mix, who became a famous movie
star, died in 1940.

        -30-

Thanks for material found in these excellent books:

Durham, Philip and Jones, Everett, _The Negro Cowboys_ , New York 1965.

Gipson, Fred, _Fabulous Empire: Colonel Zack Miller's Story. Boston, 1946.