cowboy, in the western United States, a horseman skilled at handling cattle, an indispensable labourer in the cattle industry of the trans-Mississippi west, and a romantic figure in American folklore. Pioneers from the United States encountered the vaquero (Spanish, literally, “cowboy”; English “buckaroo”) on ranches in Texas about 1820, and some pioneers mastered his skills—the use of lariat, saddle, spurs, and branding iron. But cattle were only a small part of the economy of Texas until…
![Avatar](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.pinimg.com/140x140_RS/40/99/27/40992794644ffeaa37c7251780078d92.jpg)
Debby Conner