Pickett, Bill (Willie M.)

Impact on the world

Invented bulldogging after observing how herding dogs subdued cattle by biting their upper lip, developing a technique of leaping from a horse onto a running steer, wrestling it to the ground, and biting its lip to hold it still; the maneuver evolved into modern rodeo steer wrestling, and in 1972 Pickett became the first African American inducted into the National Rodeo Hall of Fame, followed by the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 1989.

Life & background

Born in Texas to a formerly enslaved father and a mother of African American and Cherokee descent, Pickett left school after the fifth grade to work as a ranch hand, where he developed his signature bulldogging technique and began performing it at local fairs for tips. He and his brothers founded the Pickett Brothers Bronco Busters and Rough Riders Association before he joined the Miller Brothers' 101 Ranch Wild West Show in 1905, touring internationally and becoming, by some accounts, the first Black cowboy movie star through his appearances in the silent films 'The Bull-Dogger' (1921) and 'The Crimson Skull' (1922). Because many rodeos barred Black competitors outright, Pickett sometimes identified himself as Comanche in order to be allowed to perform, despite his well-documented African American ancestry. He died in 1932 after being kicked in the head by a horse at the 101 Ranch, and the modern Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo, founded in 1984 and still touring today, continues to showcase Black cowboys and cowgirls in his name.

Sources

1. Texas State Historical Association; Encyclopædia Britannica; Texas Highways; Legends of America