Why are there rodeos? Why are there cowboys? Why are there horses in
America? Where did the word cowboy come from? The Stetson cowboy hat? Why were there TV shows like Gunsmoke, The Lone Ranger, and The Cisco Kid?

This fascinating presentation traces cowboy culture’s roots from the open plains of Spain to the establishment of ranching culture in the New World. Angel Vigil describes the role of the Spanish/Mexican vaquero in the establishment of
traditional cowboy and ranching practices in the west, placing the historical and fictional lore of the origins of the American cowboy in the historical context of the vaquero, the true first cowboy.

Presented by Chautauqua scholar Angel Vigil.