DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to give it the telling it deserves. The tradition of the Texas cowboy — now that's a story that doesn't start in Texas at all. It originates up from northern Mexico, with the vaqueros.
Men on horseback, herding livestock, mainly cattle, across open prairie. Somewhere along the way, those men rode north into Bandera County, and they became legends. That's the marker's word, not mine.
Legends. The City of Bandera became known as a cowboy town — a place for recreation, for supplies, for everything a working hand needed between long stretches of dust and trail. Boys learned to ride and drive cattle young, earning wages on the ranches almost before they were finished growing.
Now, picture this. The Western Cattle Trail stretched from Mexico, up through Texas, all the way to the Canadian border. From 1874 to 1894, it is estimated that thirty thousand cowboys drove somewhere between seven and ten million longhorns — and one million horses — through that trail, using Bandera as a staging area.
Let that settle in for a moment. Seven to ten million longhorns. Bandera as the jumping-off point.
By the 1920s, the cowboys who worked the ranches started showing off what they could do during roundups and cattle drives, and local rodeos were born. Bandera had its very first rodeo in 1924, out at Mansfield Park, and rodeos have kept right on rolling there through the years. The Buck and the Bruce ranches started taking in summer guests, holding rodeos as entertainment.
Others followed — the Dixie Dude, Bennie's U-Bar, and the Twin Elm ranches. Bandera cowboys weren't just good. They were the best in the world, earning world champion titles and getting inducted into the National Cowboy Hall of Fame.
In 1938, a man named Toots Mansfield became Bandera's first world champion, in calf roping. And if once wasn't enough, he earned that title on six additional occasions. He went on to become the first president of the National Rodeo Cowboy Association, which was organized in 1945.
Then in 1948, a San Antonio newspaper called Bandera the Cowboy Capital of the World. Since then, that title has shown up in newspapers and magazines throughout the world. So next time somebody asks where the cowboy capital of the world is, well — the marker's already answered that question.
What the marker says
The tradition of the Texas cowboy originated from northern Mexico with the vaqueros, individuals mounted on horseback who herded livestock, mainly cattle, through the open prairie. These men became legends in Bandera County. The City of Bandera became known as a cowboy town for recreation and obtaining supplies. Boys learned how to ride horses and drive cattle at a young age to earn wages on the ranches. The Western Cattle Trail extended from Mexico through Texas and up to the Canadian border and from 1874 to 1894, it is estimated that thirty thousand cowboys drove seven to ten million longhorns and one million horses through the trail using Bandera as a staging area. Local rodeos began in the 1920s when cowboys who worked the ranches started exhibiting their skills during roundups and on cattle drives. Bandera had its first rodeo in 1924 at Mansfield Park, where rodeos have continued through the years. The Buck and the Bruce ranches took in summer guests holding rodeos as entertainment. Others that followed were the Dixie Dude, Bennie's U-Bar, and the Twin Elm ranches. Bandera cowboys became famous by earning world champion titles and being inducted into the National Cowboy Hall of Fame. In 1938, Toots Mansfield was Bandera's first world champion in calf roping, earning this title on six additional occasions. He later became the first president of the National Rodeo Cowboy Association which was organized in 1945. In 1948, a San Antonio newspaper referenced Bandera as the "Cowboy Capital of the World." Since then, this title has been mentioned in numerous newspapers and magazines throughout the world. (2013)