The cowboy movies you watched growing up told you a lie.
When you think of cowboys, you probably picture a white man in a hat riding across the desert. That’s what Hollywood wanted you to see. But here’s the truth: one out of every four cowboys in the Old West was Black.
So where did all the Black cowboys go in the movies?
The Big Cover-Up
Starting in the early 1900s, movie makers had a problem. They wanted to sell the idea that America was built by white heroes. Black cowboys didn’t fit that story. So they erased them.
Think about it. You’ve seen hundreds of cowboy movies. How many had Black cowboys as the main character? Probably zero.
This wasn’t an accident. It was planned.
The Real Black Cowboys Hollywood Ignored
While Hollywood was making fake stories, real Black cowboys were making history:
- Bass Reeves arrested over 3,000 criminals as a U.S. Marshal. He inspired the Lone Ranger character, but they made the Lone Ranger white.
- Bill Pickett invented bulldogging, a rodeo sport still used today. But most people don’t know his name.
- Nat Love was called “Deadwood Dick” and won rodeo contests across the West.
These men weren’t sidekicks. They were legends.
Why This Matters Today
When kids don’t see people who look like them in movies, they think they don’t belong. For over 100 years, Black children grew up thinking cowboys were only white.
But things are changing. Movies like “The Harder They Fall” and “Concrete Cowboy” are finally telling the truth.
Author Louis C. Hook digs deep into this cover-up in his book “Black in the Saddle.” He shows how Hollywood worked hard to erase Black cowboys from history. You can read his full investigation here where he shares stories Hollywood never wanted you to know.
The cowboy was never just white. It’s time everyone knew the real story.