Across the fence: Celebrating the 120th anniversary of the Chadron to Chicago cowboy race (Part I)

One hundred and twenty

years ago nine riders, mounted

on western-bred horses,

gathered on the street in

front of the Blaine Hotel in

Chadron, Nebraska. Eight

riders held the lead rope of

a second horse that would be

used alternately during the

1,000 mile ‘race’ to Chicago.

More of a test of endurance

for man and horse than a race

against time, the idea for the

event began as an attention

grabbing press release for

gullible eastern newspapers.

Not only did the public take

the bait, but also the interest

and enthusiasm for such an

event became so popular that

the intended practical joke

had to become reality.

The beginnings of the elaborate

hoax of a Chadron to

Chicago horse race, according

to some, came from the

Dawes County Clerk and a

Crawford, Nebraska cowboy.

Emmett Albright, a Texas

cowboy living in Crawford

started a rumor that no less

than 300 wild cowboys were

going to race across the prairie

to the Worlds Fair in Chicago

where they would perform

demonstrations of calf roping,

branding and other range

skills. Dawes County Clerk,

John Maher, known locally as

the ‘paralyzer of truth’ was a

practical joker extraordinaire.

Maher embellished the story

and being the local correspondent

for eastern newspapers,

released the account for publication.

To the locals of Chadron,

Crawford and other Nebraska

panhandlers it was a great

joke. Follow-up articles had

the good folks of Nebraska

laughing up a storm as the

story continued. Inside jokes

about unlikely residents who

would ride in the race kept

the laughter rolling. Fictitious

monikers such as Cockeyed

Bill, Dynamite Dick and

Snake Creek Tom were supposed

riders in the great race.

Spotted Wolf and He Dog,

wild savages from the reservation,

were said to be participating

and even a woman

from Denver, one Emma

Hutchinson would “transform

herself into a clothespin” and

ride. The ‘transformation’

was a derisive comment for a

woman who would ride like a

man and not sidesaddle.

While all this publicity was

a great joke for the locals, the

folks back east and around

the world took it dead seriously.

When inquiries about the

event, the route, the riders,

the horses and all pertinent

details came pouring in to the

city officials of Chadron, it

became apparent that action

needed to be taken. There

were only two viable alternatives;

either admit that the

whole elaborate hoax was a

lie and become the laughing

stock of the world or organize

the longest endurance horse

race ever conducted. It was

decided to hold the race.

One of Chadron’s leading

citizens, L.J.F Iager rounded

up a group of influential

businessmen, the local sheriff

and fire chief and formed the

Chadron to Chicago Cowboy

Race Committee. In short

order the rules and regulations

were drafted and the

proposed route had been laid

out.

“The race will be open to

anyone riding western horses;

horses must have been

western born and bred; each

rider will be permitted two

horses to alternate riding and

leading; only western cowboy

stock saddles weighing at

least 35 pounds will be used;

rider, saddle and blanket are

to weigh not less than 150

pounds; entrance fee for each

rider will be $25 and must be

paid no later than June 1; the

race will start at 8 a.m., June

13, 1893, from the Blaine

Hotel in Chadron and end

at the World’s fairgrounds in

Chicago; the purse is set at

$1,000.”

Harvey Weir was a member

of that committee and

a good friend of Buffalo Bill

Cody and Cody’s famous

Wild West Show had recently opened at the World’s

Columbian Exposition in

Chicago. Weir lost no time in

contacting Cody who enthusiastically

embraced the event

and insisted that the race end

in front of his personal tent.

Cody also promised an additional

$500 purse. Buffalo Bill

Cody’s involvement helped to

create worldwide interest in

the event, a fact that the publicity

seeking Cody did not

overlook.

In a time when western

expansion had exploded and

the romance of the west was

being exaggerated to its fullest

in the dime novels of eastern

writers, it is little wonder that

the Great Cowboy Race would

gain such notoriety. The horse

was the all-important factor

in the equation of transportation,

range work, agriculture

and war, and the cowboy was

the living legend of the west.

Albright and Maher’s little

joke had transformed into an

event of worldwide importance

and all eyes turned to

the Nebraska panhandle and

the Great Chadron to Chicago

Cowboy Race.

The German and Austrian

Cavalry was keenly interested

in the race’s outcome and

most especially in the performance

of the western horse.

They had recently conducted

a military exercise in the fall

of 1892, an endurance race

from Berlin to Vienna, a distance

of 360 miles, which had

resulted in disaster. Of the

230 horses used in the exercise

more than 30 had died

or were so critically injured

that they had to be destroyed.

Many of the horses, despite

their fatal condition, were

administered morphine injections

to keep them going. The

winner of that event finished

the 360-mile race in 71 hours

and 20 minutes. His horse collapsed

and died after crossing

the finish line.

This European race proved

to be an example of extreme

cruelty and abuse and served

to alert the U.S. National

and State Societies for the

Prevention of Cruelty to

Animals and the American

Humane Society. Their protest

of the race nearly succeeded

in stopping the event before it

ever began. They envisioned

300 wild cowboys, whipping

and spurring their mounts

to a frenzied pace, stopping

only when their horses had

become completely used up or

had died. They would not only

be proven wrong but would

come to realize their misjudgment

regarding the partnership

between the western

cowboy and his horse.

The Humane Society was

able to block the start of the

race until an agreement was

finally reached when two of

their representatives, Paul

Fountain and W.W. Tatro,

agreed to follow the race and

check each horse at 12 checkpoints

along the route. The

riders agreed to abide by the

ruling of Fountain and Tatro

and would withdraw from the

race if their horses appeared

to be mistreated or unable to

continue.

The route was set to run

across the northern region

of Nebraska beginning at

Chadron with the first checkpoint

190 miles distant at Lone

Pine. Two other checkpoints

in Nebraska were O’Neill and

Wausa. The riders checked

into Iowa at Sioux City with

subsequent checkpoints

at Galva, Fort Dodge, Iowa

Falls, Waterloo, Manchester

and a final checkpoint in Iowa

at Dubuque before crossing

into Illinois. Once in Illinois

the horses were checked in

Freeport and DeKalb before

the final stretch into Chicago.

It has been speculated that

the opposition to the race,

by the Humane Society, substantially

reduced the number

of entrants. Perhaps the

economic conditions precluded

a number of entrants. A

$25 entry fee was a substantial

amount in the drought

stricken panhandle as well

as the additional expenses of

food, lodging and horse care.

Perhaps the majority of the

horsemen in the region, many

of them Texas cowboys, felt

that they had already had

their share of 1,000-mile

horseback rides on the old

cattle trails. Whatever the

reasons, there were only nine

riders who registered and

started the race. They were:

Emmett Albright of

Crawford, Joe Campbell of

Denver, Colo. (Joe entered

the race with only one horse),

Dave Douglas of Hemingford,

Joe B. Gillespie of Coxville,

George Jones of Whitewood,

SD., Doc Middleton of

Chadron, Charles W. Smith

of Hot Springs, SD, James

Stephens (Rattlesnake Pete)

of Ness City, Kans. and John

Berry of Sturgis, SD.

The humane society’s objections

had delayed the start of

the race and the band, Jester’s

Freak Band, had been playing

all day. Perhaps the only

people who were not upset

with the long delay were the

saloon owners who had been

selling drinks to the thirsty

and impatient public. Finally,

about 5:30 p.m. an agreement

was reached and word spread

that the race was on. A crowd

of nearly 4,000 people (double

the population of Chadron)

gathered along the street as

the riders lined up beneath

the balcony of the Blaine

Hotel.

Fire Chief James O.

Hartzel walked to the banisters

railing to address the

riders below. “Gentlemen, the

time for the cowboy race from

Chadron to Chicago to start

is upon us. Be kind and take

good care of your horses. I

know you will conduct yourselves

as gentlemen and will,

I trust, uphold the good name

of Chadron and Nebraska!”

Hartzel raised the ivory

handled Colt Peacemaker,

which would be awarded to

the winner of the race, and

fired a single shot into the

clear Nebraska sky. The gathered

crowd set up an extended

cheer as the riders rode leisurely

down the dusty street

toward the eastern horizon. It

was 5:45 p.m., June 13, 1893.

At a steady trot, Joe

Gillespie took the lead while

most of the other riders left

at a walk. Doc Middleton, the

Chadron favorite, took time

to lean down from the saddle

with a goodbye kiss for his

two daughters and his wife.

Then waving to the cheering

crowd he shouted, “Boys, even

though I am last to leave, I

may be first to cross the line

in Chicago!”

M. Timothy Nolting is an

award winning Nebraska

columnist and freelance

writer. To contact Tim, email:

[email protected]