List of cowboys and cowgirls
Encyclopedia
The following list of cowboys and cowgirls from the frontier era of the American Old West
(approximately 1830 to 1910) was compiled to show examples of the cowboy and cowgirl
genre.
Bill Picket
American Old West
The American Old West, or the Wild West, comprises the history, geography, people, lore, and cultural expression of life in the Western United States, most often referring to the latter half of the 19th century, between the American Civil War and the end of the century...
(approximately 1830 to 1910) was compiled to show examples of the cowboy and cowgirl
Cowboy
A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the vaquero traditions of northern Mexico and became a figure of...
genre.
Cattlemen, ranchers and cowboys
- Bill H. "Barbecue" Campbell
- Wilber Emery "W.E." Campbell (1847–1907)
- John ChisumJohn ChisumJohn Simpson Chisum was a wealthy cattle baron in the American West in the mid-to-late 19th century. Born in Hardeman County, Tennessee, Chisum's family moved to Texas in 1837, with Chisum finding work as a building contractor...
(1824–1884) - Charles Francis ColcordCharles Francis ColcordCharles Francis Colcord was a successful cattle rancher, U.S. Marshal, Chief of Police, businessman, and pioneer of the Old West...
(1859–1934) - Robert Driscoll (1871–1929)
- Jesse Lincoln "J.T." Driskill (1824–1890)
- Major Andrew Drumm (1828–1919)
- Frank "Pistol Pete" EatonFrank EatonFrank Boardman "Pistol Pete" Eaton was an American author, cowboy, scout, Indian fighter, and Deputy U. S. Marshal for Judge Isaac C...
(1860–1958) - John King Fisher (1854–1884)
- Charles GoodnightCharles GoodnightCharles Goodnight, also known as Charlie Goodnight , was a cattle rancher in the American West, perhaps the best known rancher in Texas. He is sometimes known as the "father of the Texas Panhandle." Essayist and historian J...
(1836–1929) - William Bradford Grimes (1866–)
- E.M. "Ed" Hewins (–1898)
- Montford T. Johnson (1843–1896)
- James "Nigger Jim" Kelly (1839–1912)
- Richard KingRichard King (Texas)Richard King was a riverboat captain, entrepreneur, and most notably, the founder of the King Ranch in South Texas, which at the time of his death in 1885 encompassed over 600,000 acres .-Early years:Born in New York City into a poor Irish family, King was indentured as an apprentice to a jeweler...
(1824–1885) - Peter "Pete" Kitchen (1822–1895)
- George W. LittlefieldGeorge W. LittlefieldGeorge Washington Littlefield was a Confederate officer, cattleman, banker, and regent of the University of Texas. Born in Mississippi, Littlefield moved to Texas with his family as a boy.-Early life:George W...
(1842–1920) - Nat LoveNat LoveNat Love, also known as Deadwood Dick , pronounced as Nate Love, was an African American cowboy following the American Civil War. In 1907, Love wrote his autobiography, "Life and Adventures of Nat Love." In his autobiography, Nat Love explains that his father was a slave foreman in the fields, and...
(1854–1921) - Oliver LovingOliver LovingOliver Loving was a cattle rancher and pioneer of the cattle drive who with Charles Goodnight developed the Goodnight-Loving Trail. He was mortally wounded by Indians while on a cattle drive. Loving County, the smallest county in the United States in population, is named in his honor.Loving was...
(1812–1867) - Willis McCutcheon (1836–1906)
- James Alfred "J.A." McFaddin (1840–1916)
- George W. McJunkinGeorge McJunkinGeorge McJunkin was the African American cowboy in New Mexico who discovered the Folsom Site in 1908.The son of slaves who was born in Midway, Texas, McJunkin was about 14 years old when the Civil War ended. He worked as an oxen driver, working on freighters. He reportedly learned how to read from...
(1851–1922) - Robert Benjamin "Ben" Masterson (1853–1931)
- Frank H. MaynardFrank H. MaynardFrancis Henry Maynard, known as Frank H. Maynard , was an old-time cowboy of the American West who claimed authorship of the revised version of the well-known ballad, "The Streets of Laredo". After a decade of roaming the West, Maynard settled down with his wife, the former Flora V...
(1853–1926) - Colonel George Washington Miller (1841–1903)
- Zachary Taylor "Zack" Miller (1878–1952)
- Burt Mossman (1867–1956)
- Thomas O'Connor (1819–1887)
- Isom Prentice "Print" Olive (1840–1887)
- William "Bill" PickettBill PickettWillie M. "Bill" Pickett was a cowboy and rodeo performer.Pickett was born in the Jenks-Branch community of Travis County, Texas. He was the second of 13 children born to Thomas Jefferson Pickett, a former slave, and Mary "Janie" Gilbert. Pickett had 4 brothers and 8 sisters...
(1870–1932) - Abel Head "Shanghai" PierceAbel Head "Shanghai" PierceAbel Head "Shanghai" Pierce, born June 29, 1834, in Little Compton, Rhode Island, was a Texas, United States, rancher. He was a direct descendant of John Alden and Priscilla Mullins, with nine generations in between. He was related to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow as well as a president of the United...
(1834–1900) - Laban Samuel Records (1856–1941)
- William Penn Adair "Will" RogersWill RogersWilliam "Will" Penn Adair Rogers was an American cowboy, comedian, humorist, social commentator, vaudeville performer, film actor, and one of the world's best-known celebrities in the 1920s and 1930s....
(1879–1935) - Theodore RooseveltTheodore RooseveltTheodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
- Charles Angelo "Charlie" SiringoCharlie SiringoCharles Angelo Siringo , was an American lawman, detective, and agent for the Pinkerton National Detective Agency during the late 19th century and early 20th century.-Early life:...
(1855–1928) - John Ware (~1845–1905)
Wild West show and rodeo performers
- Earl W. BascomEarl W. BascomEarl W. Bascom was an American painter, printmaker, rodeo performer and sculptor, raised in Canada, who portrayed his own experiences cowboying and rodeoing across the American and Canadian West.- Childhood :...
(1906–1995) - Yakima CanuttYakima CanuttYakima Canutt , also known as Yak Canutt, was an American rodeo rider, actor, stuntman and action director.-Biography:...
(1896–1986) - William Frederick "Buffalo Bill" CodyBuffalo BillWilliam Frederick "Buffalo Bill" Cody was a United States soldier, bison hunter and showman. He was born in the Iowa Territory , in LeClaire but lived several years in Canada before his family moved to the Kansas Territory. Buffalo Bill received the Medal of Honor in 1872 for service to the US...
(1846–1917) - James Butler "Wild Bill" HickokWild Bill HickokJames Butler Hickok , better known as Wild Bill Hickok, was a folk hero of the American Old West. His skills as a gunfighter and scout, along with his reputation as a lawman, provided the basis for his fame, although some of his exploits are fictionalized.Hickok came to the West as a stagecoach...
(1837–1876) - Texas Jack OmohundroTexas Jack OmohundroJohn Baker Omohundro , also known as "Texas Jack," was a frontier scout, actor, and cowboy.He was born at Pleasure Hill, near Palmyra, Virginia, to John B. and Catherine Omohundro. In his early teens, he left home, made his way alone to Texas, and became a cowboy...
(1846–1880) - Jack HoxieJack HoxieJack Hoxie was an American rodeo performer and motion picture actor whose career was most prominent in the silent film era of the 1910s through the 1930s...
(1885–1965) - Gordon William "Pawnee Bill" LilliePawnee BillPawnee Bill , born Gordon William Lillie, was a Wild West showman and performer.Best known for his short partnership with Buffalo Bill, Pawnee Bill was born February 14, 1860, in Bloomington, Illinois. Pawnee Bill and his show made several false starts during the latter part of the nineteenth...
(1860–1942) - May Lillie, née ManningMay LillieMary E. "May" Manning Mary Manning was born on March 12, 1869 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her parents were William R. and Mary Manning. May had two sisters, Elmira and Elizabeth Manning and a younger brother, William B. Manning. May also had three half brothers, Samuel, Edward and Albert Eager...
(1869–1936) - Thomas E. "Tom" MixTom MixThomas Edwin "Tom" Mix was an American film actor and the star of many early Western movies. He made a reported 336 films between 1910 and 1935, all but nine of which were silent features...
(1880–1940) - Lucille MulhallLucille MulhallLucille Mulhall was a well known cowgirl and Wild West performer. She was raised on her family's Mulhall Ranch in Oklahoma Territory, near what is now Mulhall, Oklahoma...
(1885–1940); The original cowgirl. - Annie OakleyAnnie OakleyAnnie Oakley , born Phoebe Ann Mosey, was an American sharpshooter and exhibition shooter. Oakley's amazing talent and timely rise to fame led to a starring role in Buffalo Bill's Wild West show, which propelled her to become the first American female superstar.Oakley's most famous trick is perhaps...
(1860–1926) - Connie Douglas ReevesConnie Douglas ReevesConnie Douglas Reeves was the oldest member of the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, and one of the first women to study law at a Texas law school....
(1901–2003) - Gabriel Dumont (1837–1906)
Bill Picket
People sometimes mistaken for cowboys and cowgirls
- Black BartCharles BollesCharles Earl Bowles , better known as Black Bart, was an English-born American Old West outlaw noted for his poetic messages left after two of his robberies. Also known as Charles Bolton, C.E...
- Ned BuntlineNed BuntlineNed Buntline , was a pseudonym of Edward Zane Carroll Judson , an American publisher, journalist, writer and publicist best known for his dime novels and the Colt Buntline Special he is alleged to have commissioned from Colt's Manufacturing Company.-Naval and military experience:Edward Judson was...
- Nate ChampionNate ChampionNathan "Nate" D. Champion was a key figure in the Johnson County War. Labeled falsely by the wealthy cattlemens association in Wyoming as a rustler, Champion was the first person murdered by a band of hit men hired by the cattlemen...
- Mountain Charley aka Elsa Jane Forest Guerin
- Jose Chavez y ChavezJose Chavez y ChavezJose Chavez y Chavez was an outlaw from the U.S. state of New Mexico. He was said to be of Mexican-American and Native American ancestry...
- George Armstrong CusterGeorge Armstrong CusterGeorge Armstrong Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. Raised in Michigan and Ohio, Custer was admitted to West Point in 1858, where he graduated last in his class...
- Mysterious Dave
- Deadwood DickDeadwood DickDeadwood Dick is a fictional character who appears in a series of stories, or "dime novels", published between 1877 and 1897 by Edward Lytton Wheeler...
- Morgan EarpMorgan EarpMorgan Seth Earp was the younger brother of Deputy U.S. Marshals Virgil and Wyatt Earp. Morgan was a deputy of Virgil's and all three men were the target of repeated death threats made by outlaw Cowboys who were upset by the Earps' interference in their illegal activities. This conflict eventually...
- Wyatt EarpWyatt EarpWyatt Berry Stapp Earp was an American gambler, investor, and law enforcement officer who served in several Western frontier towns. He was also at different times a farmer, teamster, bouncer, saloon-keeper, miner and boxing referee. However, he was never a drover or cowboy. He is most well known...
- Virgil EarpVirgil EarpVirgil Walter Earp fought in the Civil War. He was U.S. Deputy Marshal for south-eastern Arizona and Tombstone City Marshal at the time of the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in the Arizona Territory. Two months after the shootout in Tombstone, outlaw Cowboys ambushed Virgil on the streets of...
- Pat GarrettPat GarrettPatrick Floyd "Pat" Garrett was an American Old West lawman, bartender, and customs agent who was best known for killing Billy the Kid...
- John Wesley HardinJohn Wesley HardinJohn Wesley Hardin was an American outlaw, gunfighter, and controversial folk hero of the Old West. He was born in Bonham, Texas. Hardin found himself in trouble with the law at an early age, and spent the majority of his life being pursued by both local lawmen and federal troops of the...
- Doc HollidayDoc HollidayJohn Henry "Doc" Holliday was an American gambler, gunfighter and dentist of the American Old West, who is usually remembered for his friendship with Wyatt Earp and his involvement in the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral...
- Frank JamesFrank JamesAlexander Franklin "Frank" James was a famous American outlaw. He was the older brother of outlaw Jesse James.-Childhood:...
- Jesse JamesJesse JamesJesse Woodson James was an American outlaw, gang leader, bank robber, train robber, and murderer from the state of Missouri and the most famous member of the James-Younger Gang. He also faked his own death and was known as J.M James. Already a celebrity when he was alive, he became a legendary...
- Calamity JaneCalamity JaneMartha Jane Cannary Burke , better known as Calamity Jane, was an American frontierswoman, and professional scout best known for her claim of being an acquaintance of Wild Bill Hickok, but also for having gained fame fighting Native Americans...
- Billy the KidBilly the KidWilliam H. Bonney William H. Bonney William H. Bonney (born William Henry McCarty, Jr. est. November 23, 1859 – c. July 14, 1881, better known as Billy the Kid but also known as Henry Antrim, was a 19th-century American gunman who participated in the Lincoln County War and became a frontier...
- Butch CassidyButch CassidyRobert LeRoy Parker , better known as Butch Cassidy, was a notorious American train robber, bank robber, and leader of the Wild Bunch Gang in the American Old West...
- The Sundance KidHarry LongabaughHarry Alonzo Longabaugh , better known as the Sundance Kid, was an outlaw and member of Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch, in the American Old West. Longabaugh likely met Butch Cassidy after Parker was released from prison around 1896...
- Bat MastersonBat MastersonWilliam Barclay "Bat" Masterson was a figure of the American Old West known as a buffalo hunter, U.S. Marshal and Army scout, avid fisherman, gambler, frontier lawman, and sports editor and columnist for the New York Morning Telegraph...
- Mollie MonroeMollie MonroeMary E. Sawyer , better known as Mollie Monroe, was an American old west woman who was known for crossdressing and for her liaisons with multiple men, among other things.Monroe fell in love with a man as a teenager...
- Belle StarrBelle StarrMyra Maybelle Shirley Reed Starr , better known as Belle Starr, was a notorious American outlaw.-Early life:...
- Johnny RingoJohnny RingoJohn Peters "Johnny" Ringo was an outlaw Cowboy of the American Old West who was affiliated with Ike Clanton and Frank Stilwell in Cochise County, Arizona Territory during 1881-1882.-Early life:...
- George ScarboroughGeorge ScarboroughGeorge Scarborough was a cowboy, lawman, and possible outlaw who lived during the time of the Wild West...
Fictional
- Quick Gun Murugan
- Hopalong CassidyHopalong CassidyHopalong Cassidy is a fictional cowboy hero created in 1904 by the author Clarence E. Mulford, who wrote a series of popular short stories and twenty-eight novels based on the character....
- Cisco Kid
- The Lone RangerThe Lone RangerThe Lone Ranger is a fictional masked Texas Ranger who, with his Native American companion Tonto, fights injustice in the American Old West. The character has become an enduring icon of American culture....
- Buford "Mad Dog" Tannen
- Lucky LukeLucky LukeLucky Luke is a Belgian comics series created by Belgian cartoonist, Maurice De Bevere better known as Morris, the original artist, and was for one period written by René Goscinny...
- PunaniskaPunaniskaPunaniska was a Finnish comic strip drawn by Harri "Wallu" Vaalio and written by Rauli "Rallu" Nordberg in the 1990s....
- Red RyderRed RyderRed Ryder was a popular long-running Western comic strip created by Stephen Slesinger and artist Fred Harman. Beginning Sunday, November 6, 1938, Red Ryder was syndicated by Newspaper Enterprise Association, expanding over the following decade to 750 newspapers, translations into ten languages and...
- Shane
- TontoTonto (Lone Ranger character)Tonto is a fictional character, the Native American companion of The Lone Ranger, a popular American Western character created by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker...
- ZorroZorroZorro is a fictional character created in 1919 by New York-based pulp writer Johnston McCulley. The character has been featured in numerous books, films, television series, and other media....
- BarbarosaBarbarosaBarbarosa is a 1982 motion picture starring Willie Nelson and Gary Busey, about a young cowboy on the run from the law who hooks up with a famous bandito and learns about life from him...
- Marlboro ManMarlboro ManThe Marlboro Man is a figure used in tobacco advertising campaign for Marlboro cigarettes. In the United States, where the campaign originated, it was used from 1954 to 1999. The Marlboro Man was first conceived by Leo Burnett in 1954. The image involves a rugged cowboy or cowboys, in nature with...
- Pecos BillPecos BillPecos Bill is an American cowboy, apocryphally immortalized in numerous tall tales of the Old West during American westward expansion into the Southwest of Texas, New Mexico, Southern California, and Arizona. Their stories were probably invented into short stories and book by Edward O'Reilly in the...
and Sweet Foot Sue - Woody and JessieJessie (Toy Story)Jessie, the Yodeling Cowgirl is a fictional character who is the main tritagonist of the films Toy Story 2 and Toy Story 3. At Christmas in 1999, the Wall Street Journal called Jessie toys among the hottest of the season...
, from the Disney/Pixar films Toy StoryToy StoryToy Story is a 1995 American computer-animated film released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is Pixar's first feature film as well as the first ever feature film to be made entirely with CGI. The film was directed by John Lasseter and featuring the voices of Tom Hanks and Tim Allen...
, Toy Story 2Toy Story 2Toy Story 2 is a 1999 American computer animated film directed by John Lasseter and co-directed by Lee Unkrich and Ash Brannon. It is the sequel to the 1995 film Toy Story, released by Walt Disney Pictures and the third film to be produced by Pixar...
, and Toy Story 3Toy Story 3Toy Story 3 is a 2010 American 3D computer-animated comedy-adventure film, and the third installment in the Toy Story series. It was produced by Pixar and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It was directed by Lee Unkrich. The film was released worldwide from June through October in Disney Digital...
. - Yosemite SamYosemite SamYosemite Sam is an American animated cartoon character in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons produced by Warner Bros. Animation. The name is somewhat alliterative and is inspired by Yosemite National Park...
from Warner Bros.Warner Bros.Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
Looney TunesLooney TunesLooney Tunes is a Warner Bros. animated cartoon series. It preceded the Merrie Melodies series and was Warner Bros.'s first animated theatrical series. Since its first official release, 1930's Sinkin' in the Bathtub, the series has become a worldwide media franchise, spawning several television...
and Merrie MelodiesMerrie MelodiesMerrie Melodies is the name of a series of animated cartoons distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures between 1931 and 1969.Originally produced by Harman-Ising Pictures, Merrie Melodies were produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions from 1933 to 1944. Schlesinger sold his studio to Warner Bros. in 1944,...
. - John Marnston