Cowboy Poetry Shares the Language of the West Through the Eyes of Those Who Live Closest to the Land

The ethos of the West is the sum of many parts, from its stunning landscape to strong-willed inhabitants, especially its cowboys. Whether during cattle drives or around campfires, cowboys have been telling stories for generations about their lives on and off the range.

Those stories evolved into poetry, as noted on the Book Riot website, and in 1907 were collected in Songs of the Cowboys, what many consider the first cowboy poetry compilation. As Book Riot notes, some of the poems became songs. Home on the Range, for example, was first recorded in 1908 by John A. Lomax, a Black cowboy and saloon owner.

The Story of Baxter Black

So Baxter Black was far from the first cowboy poet. But by the time of his death this past June at age 77, it was hard to argue he wasn’t its foremost representative. Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., Black had an authentic western upbringing in Las Cruces, NM, where he was the Future Farmers of America president in high school and rode bulls in rodeos through college. But after getting tossed around during competitions, Black figured the safer path was to get an education, which included veterinary school at Colorado State University. He practiced as a large animal veterinarian starting in 1969, but in the early ‘80s began to gain notoriety as a public speaker who shared his cowboy poetry.

Black’s radio career began in 1988 when, in response to the destructive wildfire that ravaged Yellowstone National Park, he shared what he called “a big tumultuous poem about range fire” with National Public Radio (NPR), which liked it enough to interview him. That led to Black being a regular commentator for decades (read some examples here) on NPR’s Morning Edition. He also hosted his own radio program, wrote a syndicated column (On the Edge of Common Sense), and published 30-plus books of poetry, fiction, and commentary, selling scores of books, CDs, and DVDs. (Learn more.)

His perspective was distinctly western and always entertaining. Consider Black’s commentary on “How to Pick a President,” in which he wrote: “Given the opportunity to poll candidates, there are several questions that I would proffer, i.e.: Do you consider Miracle Whip and jalapenos essential nutrients in the food pyramid? Number two: do you prefer Copenhagen or Skoal? Number three: do you have any nieces, nephews, cousins, or children named after [coon hounds] — Blue, Jake, Badger, or Whoop?”

Folklorist and musician Hal Cannon, a longtime friend of Black, told NPR that “Baxter was sort of a Will Rogers kind of a character in that he saw things clearly and he knew how to say them in a humorous and nonthreatening way.”

Black was often asked what made him decide to become a cowboy. Characteristically, his answer was simple: “You either are one, or you aren’t. You never have to decide.”

Cowboy poetry as a genre flourished alongside personalities such as Black, Doris Daley, Henry Real Bird, Dom Flemons, Waddie Mitchell and Dave Stamey. The 1985 launch of the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering – the 38th edition will be held this coming January — is considered by many the first event dedicated to cowboy poetry. Nowadays, they can be found virtually every month of the year. I’ve included a selection of events over the coming months, so find one near you to learn more about the West.

The report also noted that the nearly 8 million people who visited Colorado’s national parks, including Rocky Mountain National Park, spent a record-breaking $560 million in 2021, well above the previous record of $515 million set in 2019. Overall in 2021, the entire National Park System saw more than 297 million recreation visits, a significant 25% jump from 2020. Those visitors spent an estimated $20.5 billion in local gateway regions, an astonishing 41% jump from 2020, which supported 322,600 jobs nationally. See the full report.