Nellie Cashman, a dark-eyed Irish beauty with ebony curls fashioned into a bun, fixed a determined gaze toward the town’s main thoroughfare. She stepped out of her restaurant, the Russ House at Fifth and Toughnut Street, and strolled across the boardwalk to a hitching post.

The usual gunfire in the near distance was nothing to be concerned about. “Just another drunken cowboy feeling fearless,” she told herself aloud. A disheveled, bearded prospector wearing tattered clothes and a faded flop hat exited the eatery and walked over to Nellie. “You ain’t worried about those shots, are you?” he asked. “Not unless they get closer to my place,” she said, half smiling. The elderly miner gave his belly a satisfied pat and breathed in the desert air. “You know,” he began, “all Tombstone needs to be the garden spot of the world is more good people like yourself and water.” Nellie listened for the echo of more gunfire, but none came. “Well, stranger,” she finally replied. “I reckon that’s all Hades needs too.”

The prospector gathered up his things and thanked her for the fine meal. “The Russ House is open to everyone, even if you don’t have any money,” she assured him. “Come back any time.” The miner tipped his hat, waved goodbye, and disappeared into the night, pulling his pack mule behind him. He wasn’t the first destitute frontiersman who had benefited from Nellie’s kindness, and he wouldn’t be the last.

Nellie moved to the wild burg of Tombstone in 1880 for the same reason hundreds of other ambitious fortune seekers did: to mine for gold. She had been searching for the glittery substance for years prior to her stay in the town yet to be made famous by the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Convinced that she would one day hit the mother lode, Nellie followed stampedes from Montana to Arizona. When she wasn’t prospecting, she operated boardinghouses and restaurants. “Looking for nuggets is like hunting for a whisper in a big wind,” she reminded friends and family. “You have to have an occupation to fall back on while you’re searching for a strike.”

Nellie’s businesses offered miners a clean place to call home and appetizing meals. Her hotels were always crowded, and if a man had no money, Nellie would provide board and lodging until he made a stake; she would even loan him the money to find that stake. In 1908, the Alaska Fairbanks Daily News described the tenacious, benevolent woman as “hard as flint, with endurance on the trail equal to that of any man, but with an inexhaustible fund of good humor and a cheery word and a helping hand for anyone in need.”  

Ellen Cashman was born in Queenstown, County Cork, Ireland, in 1850. For most of Nellie’s upbringing her native country had languished in a state of depression. Food and jobs were hard to come by. Her father passed away at an early age trying to provide for his family, which consisted of his wife Frances and daughters Nellie and Fanny. At the age of seventeen and with hopes of securing a better future, Nellie made the trip across the ocean to America with her widowed mother and her sister. The trio landed in Boston on May 12, 1867. Both Nellie and Frances quickly found work at the popular hotels around the harbor. Nellie was employed as a bellhop (a job ordinarily occupied by a young man, but the Civil War had left few men to do such work) at an establishment where General Ulysses S. Grant frequently stayed. During one of his visits, he met the hard-working girl and offered advice about her future pursuits. “He was easy to talk to,” Nellie recalled to a newspaper reporter in early 1900, “like everyone I ever knew. When I told him I wanted to do things, because I had to if I wanted to live, he said, “Why don’t you go West, young woman? The West needs people like you.” 

Nellie took the future president’s words to heart, and in late 1869, she and her sister and mother boarded a train bound for San Francisco, a city overrun with people from all walks of life. In the twenty years since gold had been discovered at Captain Sutter’s Mill, less than 120 miles from the bustling city, San Francisco had grown from a scruffy camp of tents and log cabins to a booming metropolis that featured three-story stone buildings, ornately built theatres, and stores and shops of every kind. Nellie was excited about the possibilities inherent in the City by the Bay and set about securing a job at once.

Nellie and her sister were well-received by the city’s predominately male population. Offers of marriage were received daily. Fanny accepted a proposal from a fellow Irish immigrant, Thomas Cunningham, and the two quickly married. Nellie believed her destiny was in the gold fields and set off to find her fortune.

During her stay in San Francisco, Nellie heard rumors of a rich strike in Virginia City, Nevada, called the Comstock, so she decided to venture to the location. In addition to gold, the hills around the mining camp were lined with silver. More than thirty thousand people resided in Virginia City and its surrounding communities. The boisterous town’s saloons and brothels were busy twenty-four hours a day. Cooks were at a premium, and good cooks could make a profitable living. Nellie took full advantage of that fact and opened a short-order restaurant.

When she wasn’t preparing simple meals for the hungry miners, she was doing her own prospecting. She had a natural gift for digging and panning and managed to collect a substantial amount of gold. As a shrewd businesswoman, she invested her findings in restaurants and boardinghouses in other Nevada mining camps. Nellie also used her financial gain to help others. In her own words, “My goal was to make a lot of money and help anyone who needed it.”

Like most ambitious miners, Nellie was willing to relocate to any area where gold was in abundance. She would linger in a given mining camp long enough to see the initial strike decline and then move on. In 1873, after three years of prospecting in Comstock and Pioche, Nevada, Nellie went looking for the heavy yellow rock in British Columbia. Making her home near the town of Victoria, she panned for gold in the Stikine River. Her presence in the remote area earned her the distinction of being the first white woman to live and work in the harsh, seldom-traveled wilderness.

Nellie labored diligently alongside male prospectors in mountainous creek beds and streams that flowed into the Stikine River. She was outspoken and direct, and her fellow miners respected her. She would not tolerate any improprieties and was not afraid to stand up to any man who dared cross the line. She never asked to be treated differently from any other miner. She constructed her own sluice and rocker boxes to sift the sand away from the gold, chopped her own wood, and hauled water back and forth to her camp. When asked by an Arizona Daily Star reporter in a 1923 interview if she had ever been tempted to use her “feminine wilds” to make life easier, she responded with an emphatic no. “Some women…think they should be given special favors because of their sex. Well, all I can say is that those special favors spell doom to a woman and her business…. I’ve paid my bills and played the game like a man.” 

Cashman’s efforts in the Cassair District proved to be rewarding. She retrieved enough gold to fund the purchase of a boardinghouse in Victoria. As usual, the combination of hotel and dining hall was always available to customers who did not have the means to pay for food and lodging. Those who could afford her hospitality were asked to contribute what they could to help the Sisters of St. Anne build a hospital. By the winter of 1876, she had raised more than $500. The funds were given to the nuns and construction on St. Joseph’s Hospital began the following spring.

Nellie’s devotion to the mining party she migrated to British Columbia with was strong. Trappers and lone prospectors passing through her establishment kept her up to date on the health and welfare of the group during her absence from the gold field. When she received news that the men were suffering from scurvy, she loaded supplies and prescribed remedies onto a pack mule and trekked into the mountains. Six woodsmen and trappers accompanied her.

“It took seventy-seven days to reach camp as the winter was very severe,” Nellie recalled in a newspaper interview. “At (Fort) Wrangle, the United States customs officers tried to dissuade me from taking what they termed ‘my mad trip’ and, in fact, when we had been several days up the river on our journey, they sent up a number of men to induce me to turn back.” Nellie’s heroic efforts saved the lives of more than seventy ailing miners and earned her the nickname the “Angel of the Cassiar.” 

In 1879, Nellie returned to the States and was immediately drawn to a fledgling boomtown in the southern Arizona territory. Tucson became a vibrant desert community the minute the Southern Pacific Railroad finished laying tracks through the desert landscape. Nellie believed that a restaurant would be a logical and profitable business to start in the growing pueblo, and shortly after she arrived, she turned the idea into a reality. When she opened the doors of her eatery, the Delmonico Restaurant, she became the first single white businesswoman in the area. In an ad placed in the Arizona Citizen newspaper, Nellie promised patrons “the best meals in the city,” and the popularity of the establishment was proof that her cooking lived up to the bold claims. 

The quest for gold and silver lured Nellie away from Tucson within months of the Delmonico’s grand opening. News that prospector Ed Schiefflin had discovered silver in a mining camp called Tombstone sent her running to the location. She used the money from the sale of the restaurant in Tucson to invest in a pair of chophouses and a mercantile that sold groceries, ladies’ fineries, boots, and shoes.

When Nellie wasn’t working at her store or overseeing the operations at her eateries, she was searching the hills around Tombstone for silver ore. Her initial finds were modest but satisfying. As she had done in every place she had made her home, she engaged in charitable work. She was generous to the indigent, hospitals, and the arts, and she helped raise money for a schoolhouse and the building of a church. When she became too busy with community activities to mine herself, she grubstaked mining expeditions, asking for a modest percentage of the find as repayment.

Nellie’s kindness and desire to help people extended beyond the so-called “polite society” and included assisting prostitutes and prisoners. She provided for any “soiled dove” who lacked food, clothing, and the means to return home to their families. She also made regular visits to death row inmates interned at the Tombstone jail. 

The men awaiting execution were alone and fearful of the vengeful residents in the area. Angry citizens had warned the desperados that after they were hung their bodies would be exhumed and dissected. Nellie buoyed the spirits of repentant men by speaking with them about faith in God and promising that their graves would not be disturbed.

The spectacle of public hangings disgusted Nellie. She abhorred that tickets were issued to attend such events, and she made her opinions known to local officials. She proved how unafraid she was of interjecting herself in situations she believed were wrong, too: When a group of miners wanted to lynch mine owner E.B. Gage, she drove her horse-drawn buggy into the center of the conflict and rescued Gage from the violent crowd.

In the midst of her financial and business triumphs in Tombstone, Nellie experienced a personal tragedy. Her beloved sister Fannie and brother-in-law died of tuberculosis, leaving behind five children. Nellie took the orphans in and raised them as her own. All the children achieved success in their lives; her nephew, Michael Cunningham, who as a seven-year-old boy witnessed the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in October 1881, became president of a bank in Bisbee, Arizona.

No matter how busy Nellie was at the time with the children or the restaurant, she never lost sight of her vision to be a miner. When she learned there was gold to be had in southern California and northern Mexico, she organized an expedition of twenty-one mining experts to accompany her to the region. The prospectors arrived in Guaymas, Mexico, on May 24, 1883. Their search led them to the desolate area called Golo Valley. Legend maintains that Nellie happened onto a rich vein of gold in the mountains surrounding the arid basin she called Cashman’s Mine, but a priest persuaded her to keep the discovery a secret out of fear that the simple way of life of the indigenous people would be jeopardized and possibly destroyed by a gold rush.

In fact, Nellie and the other miners nearly lost their lives on foot in the hot, sandy desert valley. They underestimated the number of provisions necessary to make the journey, and the heat and lack of water nearly killed them. It was Nellie’s tenacious nature that saved the party. As the healthiest member of the group, she set out on her own to find help. She returned a day later with guides, burros, and goatskins filled with water. The expedition was subsequently canceled, and they made their way back to Tombstone.

In 1886, Nellie sold the Russ House and mercantile, gathered her family together, and for a brief time wandered the mining camps of Wyoming, Montana, and New Mexico. Realizing the vagabond way of life was not the best for her nieces and nephews, and she placed them in various Catholic boarding schools in the West. Although the children were not physically with her as they had been, she maintained a close relationship with each one of them and never failed to encourage them in their pursuits or let them know how devoted she was to their happiness and well-being.

For ten years, Nellie bounced around from mining community to mining community. She owned boardinghouses in Kingston, New Mexico, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, and Globe, Arizona. During her stay at Globe, she paged through a July 21, 1897 edition of a Phoenix newspaper and read an article about an enormous strike in Alaska. She quickly began making arrangements to explore the Klondike region. An article in the Arizona Daily Citizen on September 15, 1897, announced her intentions to leave the Southwest.

Nellie calculated that a fully equipped expedition to the Yukon would cost $5,000. She hoped to assemble a six-man team of like-minded miners and trackers to go along with her. All attempts to raise funds for the trip or attract interested parties to accompany her failed, but it did not stop Nellie from making the journey. On February 15, 1898, she reached Skagway, Alaska. She was determined to travel the perilous Chilkoot Pass to the gold fields.

Dressed in an outfit befitting a Klondike miner and hauling ample supplies for exploration, the feisty prospector set out to find her bonanza. A newspaper reporter with the British Colonist interviewed the fifty-three-year-old woman prior to her departure from the civilized area for the wild countryside. “The first white woman to penetrate the Cassair country and who twenty-one years ago visited Alaska in a quest for gold arrived in the city last night from ’Frisco,” the February 1898 article read. “She is out now for a big stake, nothing more or less than the mother lode of the far-framed Klondike region. Miss Cashman is a lithe, active-looking woman with jet black hair and possessed all the vivacity and enthusiasm of a young girl.”

Nellie managed to assemble a small team of men to accompany her and fully expected to be joined by others who wanted to go north along the crude mountainous trail. After nearly a three-week trip, Nellie reached the section of wilderness where she would begin panning for gold in the Dyea River and mining in the Rocky Mountains. She filed four claims and worked them all herself. By September 1898, Nellie had recovered more than $100,000 from a claim she called No. 19 Below.

In October, Cashman took a break from prospecting and invested her fortune in a restaurant in Dawson called the Cassair. Half of the facility was used to serve food, and the other half was a grocery store. She transformed a portion of the mercantile into a small meeting place for lonely sourdoughs. The miners could sit and enjoy a cup of coffee and a fine cigar while visiting with one another, all of which Nellie offered for free. Her generosity extended to orphaned children, destitute women, and elderly prospectors. She spent tireless hours raising money for hospitals and the building of churches.

In 1899, Nellie experienced another tragedy. Her mother, Frances, who had lived in San Francisco since she and her daughters moved west in 1869, died. Frances was 101 years old when she passed away, and according to the staff at the Magdalen Asylum where she lived, she always spoke fondly of her “adventurous girl, Nellie.”

Nellie resided in Dawson for seven years and divided her time between the restaurant, the mercantile, and mining claims. In 1905, she moved her business ventures to Fairbanks. A gold strike on the Chena River near the mining town prompted her to relocate. The drive to find the ultimate strike continued to pull Nellie out of the comfort of her grocery store and eatery and back into the frigid Alaskan hinterlands. At the age of fifty-five, she was recognized as the only female mining expert in the territory. Prospectors frequently sought her advice on where to search for a claim and how to best work the claim after it had been located.  Ironically, mining regulations prohibited unmarried women from filing new claims; they could only purchase claims that had already been filed.

Nellie was not resentful about having to work with men to achieve any mining success, nor did she ever worry that a man would take advantage of her. According to a 1923 article in the Arizona Daily Star, Nellie was highly complimentary of her male counterparts. “I have mushed with men, slept out in the open, washed with them, and been with them constantly, and I have never been offered an insult…. A woman is safe among miners as at her own fireside. If a woman complains about her treatment by any of the boys, she has only herself to blame…. I can truthfully say that there was never a bigger-hearted class of men than the genuine sourdoughs of Alaska.”

From 1907 to 1923, Nellie devoted herself almost entirely to striking it rich. Traveling across the Alaskan territory from the upper Middle Koyukuk River to a camp called Cold Foot, sixty miles from the Artic Circle, she was convinced she would hit it big. The last gold stampede Nellie participated in was at Nolan’s Creek at the base of the Brooks Range Mountains. While poking around the jagged bluffs she found a vein of gold that lined the rock under the earth. Getting to the heart of the find required a team of workers, heavy equipment, and even heavier financial backing.

Hoping to attract investors, Nellie formed a corporation called the Midnight Sun Mining Company and immediately began selling stock in the business. She had little difficulty acquiring the initial backing to begin ferreting out the gold. After mining commenced, she made frequent trips back to the States to solicit capital to continue operations.

Nellie’s fund-raising visits to New York and Washington, D.C., always generated newspaper or magazine articles about her character and vocation. “I’ve suffered trial and hardships in the frozen plains of Alaska and in the deserts of Arizona,” she told a reporter for the Cordova Alaska Times in 1917. “I’ve been alone all my life, but I have been happy and healthy. That’s why all are fooled by my age. And that is why I’m not afraid like most women to tell you that I’m sixty-seven and that I’m mighty apt to make a million or two before I leave this romantic business of mining.”

No amount of coaxing could entice Nellie to remain with her family after her ventures stateside. She insisted she had to get back to her business in the Alaskan territory, maintaining that she was a “long way from the cushion rocker stage.” In 1924, she proved her point when she led a dog-sled team 750 miles over the country’s frozen terrain. The feat earned her the title of Champion Woman Musher.

Eight months after the persistent miner accomplished the seventeen-day mushing trip, she came down with a cold that advanced into double pneumonia. The pioneer miner with a benevolent spirit died on January 4, 1925, at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Victoria and was laid to rest next to her sister at Ross Bay Cemetery.

Joining headlining sets at Stagecoach, Rock the Country, Calgary Stampede, Under the Big Sky and more, as well as a three-night stand at Whitewater Amphitheater in her home state of Texas, the three-time GRAMMY winner now adds six shows throughout July, August and September spanning from coast to coast. Tickets to the newly added dates go on sale to the general public this Friday, April 12 at 10 a.m. local time via MirandaLambert.com.

“I’ve been touring since I was 19 years old, so it was nice to step away from the road for a bit and settle into Vegas,” reflects Lambert. “That gave us time to miss touring though, so I cannot wait to get back out there on Elvira, my home away from home, and visit the fans across the country that we haven’t seen in a while.”

Lambert’s Velvet Rodeo kicked off at Planet Hollywood’s Bakkt Theater in September of 2022, spanning 48 total shows in the 18 months that followed. During that time, she has released cross-genre collaborations with both Leon Bridges and Enrique Iglesias while also intentionally taking time to write and record new music of her own; launched her own label imprint, Big Loud Texas; and even added New York Times best-selling author to her lengthy list of accolades with the release of her book, “Y’all Eat Yet?”

For more information on upcoming shows and all things Miranda Lambert, please visit MirandaLambert.com.

Upcoming Miranda Lambert Concert Dates
*on sale April 12; all others on sale now
April 19           Ashland, Ky.  ||  Rock the Country Festival
April 27           Indio, Calif.  ||  Stagecoach Festival
May 24-26       New Braunfels, Texas  ||  Whitewater Amphitheater
June 8              Mashantucket, Conn.  ||  Foxwoods Resort Casino
July 5*             Hinckley, Minn.  ||  Grand Casino Hinckley
July 12             Calgary, Alberta  ||  Calgary Stampede
July 13             Whitefish, Mont.  ||  Under the Big Sky Festival
July 17*           Paso Robles, Calif.  ||  California Mid-State Fair
July 20*           Lincoln, Calif.  ||  Thunder Valley
July 27             Anderson, S.C.  ||  Rock the Country Festival
Aug. 17            Springfield, Ill.  ||  Illinois State Fair
Aug. 24            Houston, Texas  ||  Chris Stapleton’s All-American Road Show
Aug. 30*          Canandaigua, N.Y.  ||  Constellation Brands Marvin Sands
Aug. 31*          Atlantic City, N.J.  ||  Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Sept. 27*          Gautier, Miss.  ||  The Sound Amphitheater

Riding Miniature Bulls

The Miniature Bull Riders Association was created in 2010. It has its own finals event in Las Vegas, Nevada. All across the United States, riders between the ages of 6 and 15 compete. Professional Bull Rider, Chris Shivers became a part owner of the association in 2011. He wants to help develop future PBR riders.

Usually, kids start off by riding sheep in mutton busting competitions. They then move onto junior bulls or steers. Miniature bucking bulls offer a logical next step. They’re challenging, but are smaller and more manageable than a full-sized bull. Injuries can still happen though!

Check out this event in action with the Broken Arrow Round Up Club!

This exciting rodeo event is paving the way for the next generation of bull riders. These kids are tough as nails! They come ready to ride and win.

It all started at a local Sheetz. Abriana Johnson and Caitlin Gooch met up after several weeks of talking on social media. They discussed their frustrations, goals, and visions for the Black women of the horse industry. Eventually, they decided to start up a podcast to share their conversations with others.

Young Black Equestrians offers a glimpse into the lives of Black equestrians. It shares various conversations, events, and interviews. You can learn about their culture and the equestrian lifestyle.

Check out some of the interviews you can listen to…

You can listen to these exciting and unique stories on their website Young Black Equestrians. The podcast is up to season 6 with many more to come!

Valentine’s Day Gifts

Nothing screams cowgirl more than horses, cactus, boots, and leopard print. This shirt is adorable!

Spoil your horse with a tail bag! This cutie says ‘stuck on you’ with little hearts and cactus.

Yummy! What’s Valentine’s Day without some chocolate? It’s available in milk, dark, and white chocolate.

Gorgeous! Some cowgirls enjoy jewelry gifts. This horseshoe and chain are entirely sterling silver.

This personalized bracelet is too sweet! It’s a great way to remember a special horse.

And of course, you’ll need a beautiful card to mark the occasion!

What a wonderful holiday where couples and friends can celebrate their love for each other!

Q: Can you please tell me a little bit about yourself? 

A: “My name is Hannah Beth Virginia and I am 23 years old. I am a first-generation cowgirl, the founder of “Dare To Be A Cowboy”, the owner of “Barrel Racing Planners”, a podcast host, YouTuber, and now most recently, the founder of “The Self Care Cowgirl”. My main mission in life with all of these entities is to help others become the best version of themselves that they can, whether that’s within the rodeo arena, life, the relationships around them, their careers, or whatever it may be that lights a fire in their soul. I hope that with whatever I am doing, I give those around me the inspiration that they need to achieve their dreams, feel empowered to push through the good and bad times, and have an undeniable love and appreciation for themselves in the process.”

Q: What is the self care cowgirl club? 

A: “The Self Care Cowgirl is a stem of this life mission in that I wanted to create something that helped everyday cowgirls have the tips, resources, and support needed to improve their mental and physical health. Cowgirls are known to put their horses before themselves and although that remains essential, many cowgirls sacrifice their own health in the process. This is a movement to help everyday cowgirls be on the “Self Love” journey. I call it the “Self Love Cowgirl Club” because of its aim to create an environment where those that follow us can feel a sense of community as well!” 

Q: What can members expect from joining? How do members join? 

A: “Members of the Self Love Cowgirl Club are not limited to just those that have horses, but anyone in the western community that wants to thrive! As of right now to be a member, all you have to do is follow @TheSelfCareCowgirl on Instagram! We will be posting tips, stories of other members, videos, and so much more to encourage and support others in their self love journey. We also launched The Self Care Cowgirl with a “30 Day Self Care Challenge”, in effort to get the community working together on building sustainable habits that don’t promote ‘losing weight fast’, but instead empower the importance of balance towards improving their mental and physical health.” 

Q: What was your inspiration for creating this? 

A: “It feels as though I have dealt with body issues, anxiety, and lack of confidence my entire life. I used to work out twice a day and eat nothing but the healthiest foods, all in an effort to have the best body. During that time I was also the most insecure I have ever been. 2 years ago, after coming out of the lowest point in my life to date, I set one goal for myself: to feel good. This was a pivotal moment in my life because I stopped caring about how I looked, about how much I weighed, and even stopped dragging myself down for “cheat meals”. I live a life of balance now and because of that I am in love with my confidence, my energy, and even how I look. I truly think it all came down to forgetting about the pressures, and just living life in the present moment. This sparked the idea for “The Self Care Cowgirl”, because I want others to love themselves, too. I see too many women that prevent happiness in their life because of their own insecurities and this is a movement to turn that energy around.” 

Q: What are your plans for the club in the future? 

A: “We are developing tools to help our community stay on track with their journey, as well as events to bring us all together! I can’t wait to be sharing more of these soon!” 

As of right now, the Self Love Cowgirl Club has a 30-day challenge! “Our 30 day challenge is completely timeless, which means that you can start it anytime you feel ready!” Hannah adds, “Stay tuned with us to be the first to know when our new products and experiences will be launching!”

To join, just follow their Instagram here! 

The Love Between a Girl and Horses

Sigmund Freud, founder of psychoanalysis, suggested that girls love horses because of power. Many equestrians experience a feeling of empowerment when they ride or handle horses. It’s quite an amazing feeling being able to work and train a 1,200 pound animal.

A second reason could be the relationships girls form with horses. Because women are known for being more empathetic, they tend to pick up on the more subtle behaviors of horses. This helps to develop a strong and lasting relationship, which is built on communication. Many girls also enjoy the nurturing aspects of feeding, grooming, and tending to these beautiful animals.

And lastly, horseback riding gives girls and women independence and a sense of adventure. What a wonderful freedom it is to get on a horse and ride through the trails or soar over jumps! It also gets you in touch with nature on a deeper level.

There are many reasons why girls love horses. You may not be able to explain why you care so much for them, but there’s one thing for sure… you can’t go back now. They’ll be in your heart forever and always!

For horse trainer Erin Brown (a.k.a. “The Concrete Cowgirl”), Philly’s Fletcher Street Stables was the birthplace of her successful career. And it has become the launchpad for her larger mission: to preserve the legacy of the Black cowboy and create a hub for the community.

Erin serves as executive director of the Philadelphia Urban Riding Academy (PURA), founded in 2019 by her late friend Eric Miller and the team behind the Netflix film. “I knew the ultimate goal for Philadelphia Urban Riding Academy — to bring back what Fletcher Street was for me growing up,” she says. “Before, it was once a safe haven and a place where the community can learn, grow and come around and ride horses. I didn’t have money, my mom didn’t have money.”

Erin’s current project is to establish a permanent home in the city for the horses and for the community. “We’ve been working with the city and the parks and rec department and have a site picked out. It’s absolutely amazing — on one side is a residential neighborhood and the other is a park with nature trails,” she says.

She noted that not only would the facility include stables and provide riding lessons, it also would offer after-school tutoring, programming for veterans, and pet therapy. Erin says, “We’ve been taking one of our miniature horses over to the hospital to be with cancer patients and terminally ill patients. We enjoy making other people happy.”

The Netflix film helped bring attention to their cause, but Erin says she is hoping the world continues to see what their mission is in order to preserve this culture. She says, “Not only will it benefit our horses, but it’s going to benefit the children of Philadelphia. Our kids need recreation. Not all kids want to play basketball. Not all kids want to play football. Some kids want to ride horses.”

And it’s going to happen again this year in Belle Fourche.

The Women’s Ranch Bronc Riding, sanctioned by the Texas Bronc Riders Association, will take place during the July 2-3 performances of the rodeo.

It’s an event that was common in the early days of the Roundup, said Keith Anderson, chairman. The Roundup featured women bronc riders from its inception in 1918 to the 1940s.

But that event died away, and now it’s making a comeback.

The rules are similar to the men’s ranch bronc riding, except women can ride with two hands: one on the buck rein and one on either the saddle horn or a rope tied to the saddle. Points are scored the same way as for the cowboy’s bronc riding, with more points awarded if the woman rides one handed or fans the horse with her hat as she rides.

“It’s an entertainment,” said Daryl McElroy, coordinator of the Women’s Ranch Bronc Riding. “It’s a competition, and they’re competing for money, but it’s also entertaining.”

Eight cowgirls per night will compete, on July 2-3, with the Belle Fourche rodeo being one of the stops on the Trail to Cheyenne, a tour designed to end up with a finals at the Cheyenne Frontier Days. The top three cowgirls from each performance at Belle Fourche will be invited to ride in Cheyenne.

The 2019 Cheyenne Frontier Days winner was Pearl Kersey, who will ride at the Roundup.

From Pincher Creek, Alberta, Canada, she started ranch bronc riding in 2016 and two years later, bought a camper so she could spend the summer in Texas competing in the women’s bronc riding.

She loves it, and considers having “horse sense” and confidence part of the skills that make her a good bronc rider.

Starting out, she lacked experience but it didn’t take her long to gain it. “When I started out, I was nervous and scared. But now I’m to the point where I’m nervous but confident.” The nerves are a necessary part of bronc riding, she believes. “When you stop getting the butterflies, you should stop getting on.”

Since she’s started women’s ranch bronc riding, she’s done some bronc riding at ranch rodeos in Canada, and some breakaway roping, too.

Having a good attitude is part of it, too. “Riding broncs is 90 percent mental and 10 percent physical. If you show up in a stir and you’re worried about getting bucked off and getting hurt, you will get bucked off and get hurt.

“That’s the way you gotta look at life. Show up like you’re going to win, even if you don’t know what you’re doing,” she laughed. She has won the bronc riding at rodeos in Winfield, Alberta, Lampasas, Lexington and Mesquite, Texas, and the championship at Cheyenne Frontier Days in 2019.

McElroy said fans love to watch the women ride broncs. “You might think (rodeo) is predominantly a man’s sport, yet you see these ladies, gritting it out, getting in the middle of it, and when the ride is over, waving to the crowd. It’s really awesome.”

Anderson thinks the fans will enjoy and appreciate the women’s ranch bronc riding.

“It goes back to the rich history of the Roundup,” he said. “We’re excited to have it, and I think the fans will enjoy it.”

The Black Hills Roundup kicks off June 30 with a ranch rodeo at 7 p.m. It continues with performances at 7 p.m on July 1-3 and a 3 p.m. performance on July 4. Family night is July 1; July 2 is Chutes for Charity night; and July 3 is Tough Enough to Wear Pink night. July 4 is Military and First Responders Day.

Tickets range in price from $15 to $34 and can be purchased online and at the gate.

For more information, visit the website at BlackHillsRoundup.com or call the Black Hills Roundup Office at the Tri-State Museum and Visitor Center at 415 Fifth Ave., Belle Fourche, S.D., at 605-723-2010.

(Release courtesy of Farm Forum).