The ProRodeo Hall of Fame and Museum of the American Cowboy was opened in August 1979 as a museum designed to "preserve the legacy of the cowboy contests, the heritage and culture of those original competitions, and the champions of the past, present and future." It is located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and only inducts

Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) is the largest rodeo organization in the world. It sanctions events in the United States and Canada, with members from said countries, as well as others. Its championship event is the National ...

and

Women's Professional Rodeo Association The Women's Professional Rodeo Association (WPRA) is one of the largest rodeo sanctioning bodies in the world and is open exclusively to women eighteen years of age and older. Headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the Association curren ...

members. It is the "only museum in the world devoted exclusively to the sport of professional rodeo."

Inductees

Since the Hall’s opening in 1979, 279 people, 35 livestock, and 30 rodeo committees have been inducted. More than 100 individuals are nominated each year, but only a few are selected. For a complete list of inductees, see

List of ProRodeo Hall of Fame inductees The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) created the ProRodeo Hall of Fame and Museum of the American Cowboy to recognize extraordinary athletes, both human and animal, in the sport of rodeo. Induction into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame is th ...

. Notable inductees include:

Humans

Jim Shoulders James A. Shoulders (May 13, 1928 – June 20, 2007), also known as Jim Shoulders, was an American professional rodeo cowboy and rancher. He is commemorated at the ProRodeo Hall of Fame. At the time of his death, he was one of the most success ...

, won 16 world championships * Chris LeDoux, 1970s professional rodeo cowboy and country music star, won a bareback riding world championship *

Ty Murray Ty Monroe Murray (born October 11, 1969), is an American nine-time World Champion professional rodeo cowboy. He was one of the top rodeo contestants in the world from the late 1980s to early 2000s. He is an inductee of the ProRodeo Hall of Fame ...

, seven-time all-around world champion, two-time bull riding world champion *

Tuff Hedeman Richard Neale "Tuff" Hedeman (born March 2, 1963) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who specializes in bull riding. He won the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) bull riding world championship three times (1986, 1989 and ...

, three-time bull riding world champion * Charles Sampson, first African-American world champion rodeo cowboy *

Larry Mahan Larry Mahan (born November 21, 1943) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy. He won six all-around world championships and two bull riding world championships in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) circuit at the National ...

, six-time all-around world champion *

Roy Cooper Roy Asberry Cooper III (born June 13, 1957) is an American attorney and politician, serving as the 75th governor of North Carolina since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 49th attorney general of North Carolina from 20 ...

, won six tie-down roping world championships *

Charmayne James Charmayne James (born June 23, 1970) is an American former professional rodeo cowgirl who specialized in barrel racing. In her career, She won 11 Women’s Professional Rodeo Association (WPRA) barrel racing world championships, the most in hi ...

, was an 11-time WPRA world champion barrel racer and seven-time NFR barrel racing average champion *

Slim Pickens Louis Burton Lindley Jr. (June 29, 1919 – December 8, 1983), better known by his stage name Slim Pickens, was an American actor and rodeo performer. Starting off in the rodeo, Pickens transitioned to acting and appeared in dozens of movies and ...

, actor/rodeo clown *

Ben Johnson Ben, Benjamin or Benny Johnson may refer to: In sports Association football * Ben Johnson (footballer, born 2000), English footballer * Ben Johnson (soccer) (born 1977), American soccer player Other codes of football *Ben Johnson (Australian foot ...

, steer roper/Oscar-winning actor *

Lane Frost Lane Clyde Frost (October 12, 1963 – July 30, 1989) was an American professional rodeo cowboy who specialized in bull riding, and competed in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). He was the 1987 PRCA World Champion bull ride ...

, 1987 world champion bull rider, won seven-match Challenge of the Champions with bull Red Rock *

Casey Tibbs Casey Duane Tibbs (March 5, 1929 – January 28, 1990) was a rodeo cowboy, and actor. In 1979, he was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame. Life and career Tibbs was born to John F. Tibbs (1886–1948) and Florence M. Tibbs (1889–1974) in ...

, saddle bronc rider/actor *

Don Gay Donald ("Don" or "Donnie") Gay (born September 18, 1953) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who specialized in bull riding. He won eight Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) bull riding world championships, a record as of 2 ...

, eight-time bull riding world champion *

Lewis Feild Lewis Feild (October 28, 1956 – February 15, 2016) was an American professional rodeo cowboy. He specialized in bareback bronc riding and saddle bronc riding and competed on the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) circuit. He was the ...

, three-time all-around world champion, two-time bareback riding world champion *

Fred Whitfield Fred Whitfield may refer to: * Fred Whitfield (baseball) * Fred Whitfield (rodeo) Fred Whitfield (born August 5, 1967) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who specialized in tie-down roping. He won eight Professional Rodeo Cowboys A ...

, eight-time tie-down roping world champion *

Trevor Brazile Trevor Brazile (born November 16, 1976) is an American rodeo champion who competes in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). He holds the record for the most PRCA world championship titles with 26. He won his 26th title in 2020. He a ...

, won 26 world championships, the most of any PRCA contestant

Horses

* Steamboat, a gelding bronc, was inducted 1979; he is the model of the

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...

state

trademark A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from othe ...

, Bucking Horse and Rider, with the rider having been

Clayton Danks Clarence Clayton Danks (July 21, 1879 – June 23, 1970) was a three-time winner of Cheyenne Frontier Days, an outdoor rodeo and western celebration held each July in the Wyoming capital city of Cheyenne. He is believed to be the cowboy of th ...

, a

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

native who died in 1970 in

Thermopolis, Wyoming Thermopolis is the county seat and largest town in Hot Springs County, Wyoming, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the town population was 2,725. Thermopolis is Greek for "hot city." It is home to numerous natural hot springs, in which ...

* Scamper,

barrel racing Barrel racing is a rodeo event in which a horse and rider attempt to run a cloverleaf pattern around preset barrels in the fastest time. In collegiate and professional ranks, it is usually a women's event, though both sexes compete at amateur and ...

, was inducted in 1996 *

Star Plaudit Star Plaudit (1948–c. 1970) nicknamed Red was a rodeo stock horse who excelled in steer wrestling and barrel racing. He was inducted into the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame in 2015. He was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 2017. ...

“Red”, a barrel racing horse, won two world championships in a single season * Midnight, a

saddle bronc Bronc riding, either bareback bronc or saddle bronc competition, is a rodeo event that involves a rodeo participant riding a bucking horse (sometimes called a ''bronc'' or ''bronco'') that attempts to throw or buck off the rider. Originally b ...

, was inducted in 1979 * Gray Wolf, sire, many of the best bucking horses today descend from Gray Wolf, inducted in 2016 * War Paint, a saddle bronc, was three-time bucking horse of the year, and inducted in 2011 * Descent, a saddle bronc, despite an injury at the beginning of the '70s, returned to win his fifth and sixth bucking horse of the year award, and was inducted in 1979 * Scottie,

steer wrestling Steer wrestling, also known as bulldogging, is a rodeo event in which a horse-mounted rider chases a steer, drops from the horse to the steer, then wrestles the steer to the ground by grabbing its horns and pulling it off-balance so that it falls ...

, chestnut gelding, was able to take three cowboys to four world championships. Many liked him because he did not tire easily, enabling multiple cowboys to show him in quick succession

Bulls

* Skoal Pacific Bell,

bull riding Bull riding is a rodeo sport that involves a rider getting on a bucking bull and attempting to stay mounted while the animal tries to buck off the rider. American bull riding has been called "the most dangerous eight seconds in sports." To recei ...

, only ridden five times in 150 outs, he also was the only three-time PRCA world champion bull in history, and was inducted in 2007 * Bodacious, bull riding, was one of two bulls to win the

PBR PBR may refer to: Science and technology * Passive bistatic radar * Partition boot record * Pebble bed reactor, a type of nuclear reactor * Peripheral benzodiazepine receptor, another name for translocator protein * Phosphorus bromide * Photobio ...

and PRCA world champion and the inaugural champion bull of the PBR, inducted in 1999 * Crooked Nose, was the only fighting bull inducted, loved by fans and dreaded by bullfighters, and inducted in 1990 * Red Rock, unridden in 309 outs in his pro rodeo career (though he was ridden by

in 1988, it was not actually a PRCA-sanctioned event), inducted in 1990 * Old Spec, ridden 7 times in 350 outs, was inducted in 1979 *

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People * Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms. * Oscar (Irish mythology) ...

, in 300 outs, only eight riders rode him, including

three times (twice he was ridden for 97 points), he then became a legend in breeding. In fact, the renowned Bushwacker and many other great bulls came from Oscar. He was also featured in the Disney documentary film, '' The Great American Cowboy'', and was inducted in 1979 *

Tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...

, bucking off 220 cowboys before being ridden by

Freckles Brown Warren Granger "Freckles" Brown (January 18, 1921 – March 20, 1987) was a hall of fame American rodeo cowboy from Wheatland, Wyoming. His career spanned from 1937 to 1974, competing in bull riding, saddle bronc riding, bareback bronc ri ...

, was inducted in 1979

Pioneer Award

* Earl W. Bascom, recipient of the Pioneer Award 2016, was a rodeo-equipment inventor, world record time holder, actor, and artist/sculptor.

References

External links

Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prorodeo Hall Of Fame Rodeo in the United States Cowboy halls of fame Sports halls of fame Rodeo Sports museums in Colorado Museums in Colorado Springs, Colorado Museums established in 1979 1979 establishments in Colorado Sports hall of fame inductees Rodeo organizations Rodeo competition series Awards established in 1979