Black Cowboys: A Campfire Conversation ~ 4/14/22, Witte Museum

Black Cowboys: An American Story exhibition co-curator Ron Davis in conversation with cowboys Larry Callies and Tex Williams. Tales of roping, rodeo, and the founding of the Black Cowboy Museum in Rosenberg, Texas.
***
Recorded April 14, 2022 in the Mays Family Center at the Witte Museum.
***
Black Cowboys: An American Story is presented by Bank of America and generously supported by the John L. Santikos Charitable Fund of the San Antonio Area Foundation, H-E-B and Ed Rachal Foundation. Program was presented free of charge thanks to the generosity of H-E-B.

[@MrJohnMoIII]

As a boy from Oklahoma I grew up at black rodeos with horses and cattle. I'm mixed blood myself Native and Black. I'm proud of my heritage and still wear my boots, buckle and hat. This needs a million views so our people can see black cowboys and Natives exists and this way of life was here before the colonizers arrived.

[@Ryo7_7]

We still have trail riding today but not as much bull riding lol. SE Texas.

[@antoniobanderas9769]

❤I glad to hear that , but we need to thanks 🙏🏿 the Mexicans / Mestizos , they invented a lot things for the cowboys way in North America and the Conquistadores brought the horses 🐎 & livestock to Las Americas too. Greetings from the Sonoran desert 🌵 🏜️ Mexico 🇲🇽

[@ORLANDOARIASORLANDO]

I don't know why black cowboys have relaxing voices?

[@richardmontonio1486]

John Mosley Mexicans were the first cowboys back in the 1500s to now indians back then also knew how to ride. You have to understand DnA of a Mexican is 50 percent spainard and 50 percent American Indian. Christopher Columbus brought horses and cattle from spain that was the year 1492 and blacks didn't know how to ride until 1800s?

[@richardmontonio1486]

Sorry to bust your bubble but spainards brought horses and cattle to America in 1492. You blacks must understand Mexicans are half Indian and half spainards. Spainards our forefathers showed their sons the Mexicans, how to ride horses in the 1500s this was when you blacks and whites were not even in America yet. The word rodeo and lasso are Spanish words from the 1500s. Mexicans were the first to ever ride horses in America as a matter of fact Mexicans and Indians rode horses for a hundred years with no one else in America but Mexicans and Indians from 1500 to 1600. White men came in the 1600s then blacks came as slaves in 1619. white men didn't know about rodeo or riding till after the Mexican and American war. In 1830 and blacks started riding after the civil war in 1865 white men showed blacks the ropes of being a cowboy. Vaqueros were the name of the first cowboys? So all you blacks enjoy Mexican culture.

[@catessc1]

I knew, known, and have know of black cowboys I say praise our Holy Father for black cowboys and for grace.

[@richardmontonio1486]

Enjoy Mexican culture. The word rodeo and lasso is Spanish.

[@SweetBrownGirl]

Baby I don't mean any harm, but the first Mexican on this earth was black skinned, but I get your drift. Although the Mexicans were the first ones, it's still apart of my culture. Some black men had to be cowboys in order to work, they didn't do it to copy the Mexican culture, just putting it out there.​@@richardmontonio1486

[@Jahrastafari365]

My pawpaw who passed in north Carolina recently was the closest thing I saw to a cowboy since I was born to the day he died he dressed head to toe as a cowboy even after he came out the war..his cowboy spirit fell on me and now I carry the weight of the cowboy spirit...I love and respect every black person that is connected to the cowboy and cowgirl it's not enough of us being seen on mainstream TV or even in neighborhoods..much love to yaw! Much respect 🤠

[@db26127]

This needs to be a part of American History

[@nkel6111]

dummie...it is right here

[@sherleengibson8847]

I LOVE THE STORY ABOUT THE LONG RANGER 😅. You guys are AWESOME 👍🏾🖤.

[@itumelengmokoena6886]

I always new blacks were the first cowboys, in my country south Africa we were called garden boys and kitchen girls, so people must not get twisted, from Godfrey MalikCowboy. I love you my elders.

[@richardmontonio1486]

Sorry the first cowboys were the vaquero Mexicans. Christopher Columbus brought horses and cattle from Spain in the late 1400s . Mexican cowboys rode and handled horses for a good 400 years till white man was introduced to Mexican vaqueros that was after the Mexican and American war. Blacks were still slaves and were not introduced to horses till blacks were released from slavery. Indians were taught by the spainards how to ride. Mexicans are the children of spainards and Indians, DNA in a Mexican is half European and half amerindian with a 1 percent African blood. Yes Mexicans were the first true cowboys of America.

[@kennethleonard8394]

I really enjoyed these cowboys

[@jdagreat4595]

Proud cowboy 👍🏾, from Richmond California growing up riding was a part of ky city! black cowboys would ride threw out the town , allowing the kids to pet an learn about horses. In Richmond we are originally southern folk were just stuck in California 😊 👍🏾

[@Ryo7_7]

My grandfather's father was a real cowboy. Learning and seeing documentation of that history of having nice size of property for a house, farm and the church across the street where he preached. Thank you guy's for your stories. 👍🏾

[@ashleyvaughn5213]

Wow he tracked his family back to 1453. I would like to no more about that. Great stories❣️

[@shashaduke8700]

THANK YOU❤❤❤

[@nuance10]

It would be wonderful to hear more history from Larry Callies!

[@lewiserwin2686]

There’s no reason to try to erase history, hiding books, denying people success cannot be altered or erased. Our culture is very strong and honest

[@queenthings266]

Thank you for posting

[@oliverchristopher1964]

you guys put the pieces of the puzzle together .. honours to you hombres .

[@HawkemCinco]

This is our history that they need to get out

[@dragonfire1842]

I loved this! These guys are so real. The kind you sit around a campfire with and listen to their stories, just like cowboys.

[@yvettefilgo5383]

Thankyou for sharing history I never knew about.Blessings to y'all🥰

[@carolhallsmith6221]

I love this stories! I have roots in OK.

[@CodeNameAlison]

Larry Callies is a legend

[@MotherEarthAmbassador]

Love this...appreciated the panel. 🖤🌹

[@johnathanwhite7498]

Just for the record, Black Cowboys was first in the state of Florida as well as cattle ranches.

[@brangomez1466]

Wrong it was the Spanish they brought the cattle to the Americas thought the natives how to ride and take care of cattle and that’s how the original cowboys came up called vaqueros from the state of Texas all the way to California vaqueros existed before anglos came to the west

[@andreaallenjones]

Wonderful. Scratch a lie find a thief. I knew about black cowboys, but not the origination of the name. Wow. I'm educated now.

[@Your_fav_Monkey.]

My dad works at the witte he's name is ron

[@marciabyram6003]

Heck yeah! What do you call a Mule Skinner? "I can make any mule listen, that won't accept obey. Hey, Hey!" Love my mules. Interesting stories. Instead of Cowboy how about we say Cattleman? 😍

[@thephoenixrising4614]

I 👍 to get rid of that 666.

[@MetalxMilitsia]

They don't sound like how the black characters sound like in video games, they sound like country musicians. I'm from India and I have never heard a black person from America talking like this. I have heard people from Nigeria talking in a normal way but most of the American blacks I have heard talk in a very different way like, do you thang, I ain't do no shit, even their grammar is very different.

[@latoyaluvslocs]

What are u talking about? U know absolutely NOTHING about us Black Americans. Worry about India. We speak various dialects of BAE/AAVE.

[@hubertbailey2225]

The cowboys in the movies were killers bounty hunters and bank robber the present day politicians and police.

[@TIENxSHINHAN]

I know what you're trying to say. Black Americans speak our own dialect of English, and it differs slightly in urban and rural regions. What you're thinking of is more of an urban dialect, the men in this video have closer to a rural dialect. But the way they speak is kind of closer to how white Texans speak than how black Texans speak. They likely spent a lot of their youth in majority white towns and are influenced by the accents there. The guy in the blue is from South Texas and that's a region that's mostly white and Tejano (Texans of Mexican descent). I'm a black Texan and have cowboy ancestors, but since they grew up in Eastern Texas, a region that has a lot more black people, they have more of a stereotypical rural Southern black accent. They don't sound anything like these men.

[@richardmontonio1486]

Yes black people enjoy mexican culture since 1500s remember this rodeo and lasso is spanish words. So enjoy black people?

[@SweetBrownGirl]

Get over it!🙄

[@rosemontano8705]

​@@SweetBrownGirl Google when the first cowboy hat was created? Sombrero was created in the 1500s when no black or whiye men even lived in america, then google the first white man cowboy hat in america is the stenson in 1830. Black slaves were not teleased.from slavery till 1868 afyer the civil war. White men had been riding horses in america since 1830 ,30 years before freed black slaves went out looking for work, finding cowboy jobs and werw trained by white men. Mexicans taught white men how to ride horses. All of the southwest of america are filled with horses left byexicans because of the mexican and american war.

[@richardmontonio1486]

​@@SweetBrownGirlspainards brought horses into America from Spain in the early 1500s there was no white or black men in America till the early 1600s. Black cowboys didn't evolve till after the civil war in 1865. The first cowboy hat was created by John stetson in 1860 when blacks were still slaves. So that is not true blacks were the first cowboys. They were the last cowboys in america.

[@catessc1]

You ain't no cowboy if you've never knew about black cowboys. OBTW there are Cowhands, Cowpokes, Cowpunchers, saddle tramps, and sh-t kickers.

[@rosemontano8705]

No black, white or spainard was in america in 1452? Only native indians were in america. Black slaves came in america in 1619 and whites came in 1609 and mexicans came in the 1500s spainards came in 1492. The first black cowboy came in 1865.after the civil war.

[@brangomez1466]

How can his family be in Texas since 1453 if the Aztec empire failed in 1521 there was no African slaves in south texas before 1824 !?

[@HawkemCinco]

Slavery is not what you have been taught in school

[@brangomez1466]

@@HawkemCinco there is no evidence no blacks in Texas before 1824 like I said he said he tracks his family back to 1453 the Aztec empire failed in 1521 which means there were no boats from the old world that was in Texas in 1421 🤦🏻

[@avillianchillinskrillian]

@@brangomez1466 I agree with you if he was implying his family was in Texas at that time, but maybe he was saying he had records from Africa(which obviously would be very difficult but not impossible for some).

[@brangomez1466]

@@avillianchillinskrillian his answer is misleading bc the question was clearly asked how far do you trace your family back in south Texas if he is lying or attentionally misleading how can he be trusted ?

[@richardmontonio1486]

The reason of the Mexican and American war was because of 10000 blacks escaping to Texas which belonged to Mexico. White man wanted black slaves back but Mexico said no because slavery was against the law in Mexico. President polk declared war on Mexico in 1840s that is when America won and took all the southwest land of Mexico = america taking horses and cattle from Mexicans. From there the Mexicans who lived north of the border became American citizens with a stroke of the pen before blacks were released from slavery. From there Mexican cowboys taught white men how to ride and handle horses. White men taught black men to ride after they were released in 1860s from slavery. Black men were the last to ride horses and the first were Mexicans and Indians.

[@nkel6111]

theres pride in hustling animals to the ground and roping?? shallow pride, shllow effort as I see it. Pssttt...how about college as harvard or MIT where one cant sneak in the back door ???

[@BlackLionVlogs816]

🤡

[@01abihsot]

They lost me when he said he could trace back to 1453 this is just two people whining and complaining not giving real facts or stories

[@avillianchillinskrillian]

....huh?

[@avillianchillinskrillian]

The 1453 line was weird but they "weren't complaining. People are allowed to talk about history, and emotions. You wouldn't like someone saying that about your heritage.

[@areguapiri]

Religion makes people say ridiculous things.

[@gerrysharpe1958]

They gave many facts that are verifiable, if you contest one statement then it's your responsibility to disprove. They are living historical references with their family western histories.