This year is the 10th anniversary of Cowboy Poetry Week in the United States. According to Nevada Magazine, there are almost 150 festivals which celebrate cowboy poetry throughout the country.
Texas Governor Rick Perry, a huge fan, has issued many proclamations celebrating cowboy poetry in his beloved home, eloquently stating that “through cowboy poetry, we can gain insight into the emotions and thoughts of those who made history and those who continue to live and work in the cowboy culture today. …cowboy poetry gives us access to life on the range with all its accompanying excitement, hardships, and dreams.”
Nevada also celebrates cowboy poetry. This past January marked the 27th year of the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko, Nevada. Produced by the Western Folklife Center, this “week-long celebration of life in the rural West” features “the contemporary and traditional arts that arise from lives lived caring for land and livestock.” Click here to learn more.
So celebrate Cowboy Poetry! -Enjoy some classic poems here.
~ Olivia M.
