A new exhibit uses photographs and text documents to show the lives of eight women and how they represent elements of a cowgirl today.
“They were out here doing the real work and they had that sort of spirit that I wanted to showcase for this exhibit,” said Grace Derby the curator of the exhibit.
The American Heritage Center’s Western Women: What Makes a Cowgirl? is Derby’s first curation.
Derby is a Wyomingite and a recent graduate from the University of Wyoming with a degree in History and Museum Studies.
“ In my brain, nothing is more Western than the image of a cowboy,” said Derby. “So it's like, all right, well it wasn't just the men out here. I wanted to see what women we had in our collection and tell their stories.”
But Derby said defining what a cowgirl is has its challenges. The symbol represents an occupation, a way of life and a mindset. Cowgirls much like their male counterparts have historically worked outdoors, often with cattle doing physical labor. According to Derby, as history progressed the word cowgirl moved to describe women in rodeo, ranch work, film stars and now, any woman who identifies with the aesthetic.
“ I think it's really important for people to find these identities and if they're able, just fully embrace them and make it their own,” said Derby when discussing the multiple identities of cowgirls.
Derby said key elements emerged in the lives of the eight women like independence, hard work and the spirit of the West.
Sisters Amy and Elise Cooksley are featured in the exhibit. English immigrants raised on the East Coast, they moved to live on a ranch in Wyoming in the early 1900s. After the sisters' husbands passed away, the two moved in together on the family’s ranch. The pair were known for being great ropers and riders and would host hunters at their ranch, taking them on horseback hunting expeditions.
Another featured cowgirl is Annie Richie who moved throughout the West until settling down with her husband to run a cattle ranch. After her husband left her, Richie grew the cattle ranch into an empire where she began cattle rustling, the illegal practice of stealing and rebranding cattle. Known as the “Petticoat Rustler,” she was the first woman to be convicted of cattle rustling and was assassinated before she could serve time.
Natawista Iksana was a Blackfoot Tribes member who married a fur trapper and lived in Fort Benton, Montana. Seen as a less conventional cowgirl, Iksana stayed very connected to her tribe and family. Known for stirring up trouble on the quiet fort and taming young wild horses, Iksana represents this spirit of the West seen among cowgirls to Derby.
Fern Sawyer, a rodeo cowgirl from New Mexico was the first woman to join the National Horse Cutting Association in Fort Worth, Texas. She was later inducted into the Cowgirl Hall of Fame. A vocal member of rodeo and politics Sawyer represents a more modern image of a cowgirl.
Two of the exhibit's more famous women are Annie Oakley and Grace Bradley Boyd. Oakley was a sharpshooter who traveled with Buffalo Bill Cody in his Wild West shows.
Grace Bradley Boyd played a cowgirl on TV as Hop Along Cassidy. Boyd bought a ranch in California where she kept her horses and maintained the gritty spirit in and out of Hollywood.
Derby said they wanted to showcase a diverse representation of what it means to be a cowgirl. Derby hopes the exhibit can serve as a reminder that women have been working the West this whole time.
“ We have been doing this for hundreds of years for the entirety of time. There's never been a stagnant type of woman,” said Derby. “So I think it's really good to see different representations throughout different periods and times of women doing different things and having this sort of spirit of being able to go out on their own or with their family and do what they wanted to do, what they were passionate about, and live their own lives.”
The exhibit is open to the public till April 22.
