Branding Crew at Tuck's 1962

Branding Crew 1962

from left to right: Turtle, Finus, Earl Parkinson, Gene Hay, Dale Brown, Jimmy Ted Bilberry, Top, Dad, Doug Toombs, Ted Williamson, Jay Carroll, Ben Fuller, Uncle Tom Davis.

These guys almost seem like family!

Day 10 Cowboy Pictures by Stewart - Woody

1961 fall works, my first trip out with the wagon. When they roped out the horses that morning I called for "Woody the Rocker." In fact, I called for Woody every morning. My entire string was comprised of Woody! Woody was tough as oak lol, you could ride him all day, every day. I was quite a ways from acquiring "super puncher' status at this point, I'd forgot my hat that morning lol. Damn, that's kinda embarrassing! But as my ole amigo Mack Ainsworth used to say; 'the West wasn't won in a day. It took all most a week. And there was some overtime involved!" I don't know that there are many cowkid ponies of Woody's caliber today. My amigo Casey McGlaun still raises a few, but they are not common in todays world. A big thanks to my compadres Justin Johnson and Dino Cornay for talking me into doing this. It brought back lots of good memories. In the words of Jim Stafford, I got to trip and never leave the farm lol

Comments:
More evidence of how important Woody the Rocker was. A boy needs his pony.

Lotsa folks wonder what became of Stewart’s first horse, Woody the Rocker. With every year that has passed, ol’ Woody has gotten a little smaller. Here’s a new photo. Another decade or two, he might be gone all together. Happy trails, Woody the Rocker. You never bowed up once, even during intense episodes of Captain Kangaroo. You were a good ‘un.

Stewart Williamson when woody was not available you could always make do with snoopy...

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Day 9 Cowboy Pictures by Stewart

This was a rig of my dad's. He used pickups with sideboards until 1964 or 65. I think that's Larry Preuit airing the tire up. Larry day worked for my dad, and later on I day worked for Larry's dad Top. The air hose coming from the motor area is a mystery to me. Maybe Dad had some kind of a compressor rigged up on the motor? This pic tells the story of ranch life prior to radial ties. Flat tires were a daily chore, just like feeding the horses and milking the cow. I sometimes cuss modern technology, but I'll never say anything but good about the advent of steel belted tires. They were a game changer for the ranching profession. I can also draw a picture in my imagination of Roy Lee Criswell and I being of age back in this era. If we could have had a rig like this and a horse named Old Fooler, we would have been just as cool as Glen Ford and Henry Fonda in The Rounders. Hell, we might have even been cooler lol

 selected comments:


Larry Littlefield Everybody is missing the hard part, training the horses to jump up in the pickup. Ole Jay Carol had a horse that really didn't like it, but you know JC, he always won!

I also rode Preacher and Doubtful and loaded them in that pickup.

Stewart Williamson Larry, a jillion comments on this. You were the only on who was actually there lol

Larry Littlefield yes I was working there summers 61-thru 67 and 71. Larry Preuit was there off and on, summers the 5 years before me, I think.

Larry Littlefield We really slowed down using the pickup after I built the red 4-horse trailer.

Stewart Williamson Larry, so you remember what year you built the trailer?

Larry Littlefield no, I think I built the double deck chute one year and the trailer the next. The plans/directions came from the Dora Ag teacher, who was having the class make them each year (I think).so I would guess 64 or 65.

Larry Littlefield maybe the other way around. I don't think much of the corral was finished when the trailer was, cause I remember using it to get stuff from Lubbock. I do think the swimming pool was first big project though.

Day 6 Cowboy Pictures by Stewart - Jim & Top

Jim and Top Preuit

Day 6. My dad and Top Preuit looking on at a branding in 1990. No action in this photo, they were both too crippled by then to participate. Which was sad because the two of them possessed a wealth of experience and wisdom in cowboyology. Dad and Top were lifelong neighbors and close friends. Members of the so called greatest generation, and veterans of World War Two. Top was a survivor of the Bataan Death March. In the words of Louis L'amour, they would do to ride the river with.

Some comments:
 Justin Reichert Dossie Cribbs see how touching these photos can be ? You old spoil sport.

Stewart Williamson Haha Justin, you are right. I was 29 when this photo was taken, and I was in the the pen that day. I was too immature to appreciate their wisdom back then. I would give anything to be around them again. I'd pay more attention this time!

Kay Odom Jeffries WOW WOW WOW
These two men are the REAL deal. Both experienced life, that we only read about. They are the History of NM. I got chill bumps and tears reading your comment and looking at this picture. Said it before and saying it again, your Dad, Mom, and you kids were the first people I met, my first visit to NM, I still cherish that memory, and the steak! Can’t say enough about these two men! Both Great friends of the Jeffries
Look at those hats‼️‼️‼️‼️

Pat-Cindy Boone You said it, Stew, with a little help from Tom Brokaw:America’s Greatest Generation. Without those folks we would be speaking Japanese and eating sauerkraut. Their willingness to step up and be accountable is second to none. And then these two, along with millions of others, went to work back home and built this country into the greatest country on earth. God bless America !

Betty Williamson One of my all time favorite pictures of two of my all time favorite people. Photo credit to our dear friend, Sandy Babers, who captured many of our branding memories, and who also kept a bottle of whiskey in her desk so when Daddy stopped by Walco in Portales (and later in Roswell), he could count on sharing a drink.

Dino Cornay They need to put this picture up at the Capitol Building in Washington..that photo is priceless..real men..I knew a rancher from Roy, NM that was in the Death March..he said the only ones tough enough to survive it were the ones raised on ranches and farms because they had all worked so hard growing up.

Stewart Williamson Brother Dino, I agree. There were a lot of men from NM in the death march. I spent a lot of time around Top. I only heard him speak about it a couple times. He didn’t describe the atrocities they experienced, and he wasn’t bitter when he talked about it. He grew up in tough times, and it was just another ordeal to be faced. The most interesting thing about it he told me was he had a pocket knife though the whole deal. The guards never found it. He told me it probably saved his life and several others in his company. Because when they caught a mouse or rat they could clean it with the knife and eat it. Hard to imagine. And then, as my friend Pat Boone said, the survivors came home and went back to work. We owe them a huge debt of gratitude.

Leigh Hammond Willmon: Must've been really hard on them just to stand by & watch.....

Stewart Williamson; Leigh, that’s something I really thought about when I looked at this photo. I couldn’t relate to what they were going through back then. I’m old enough now to understand. My dad lived to be 96, but he was too crippled to do anything for the last 20 years of his life. He got up every day thinking that somehow he was going to get better so he could go back to work. His optimism never waned till the day he died.

Vicki Lynn Harp Donaghey: Love this picture. It’s funny but one thing I remember about both of them were the hats they wore. I remember Top’s hat was always the small one and your Dad’s hat looked like it had seen better days, but I bet it was his favorite one. Hutch used to wear one like your Dads. The pic brings back fond memories.

Dennis Hardisty: Stewart Williamson I need to make a correction. I said that Top was my Dad's uncle but he was a cousin. Top's dad and my grandmother's dad were brothers. Top's dad was named Otis and he lived past 100, in his last years he was in assisted living in Portales. One of my aunts went to visit him and as she was leaving one of the ladies working there stopped her and asked her if she knew "about" that man. My aunt said "Well, he's my great uncle so yes I know about him. Why ?" The lady told her that before lights out each evening Otis would make the rounds and offer money to all of the female residents of the home to sleep with him. My aunt laughed and asked her if he got any takers. Apparently Top came by it honestly !

Stewart Williamson: Dennis, I remember Top talking about that lol. Is Benny your uncle? Benny and I were both pallbearers at O. A.’s funeral.

Stewart Williamson: Dennis, here’s something else Top told me that his dad had told him. When a O.A. was young, his family lived in TX and big trail herds would pass by regularly. He told Top you could hear the herds a long time before you would see them because their horns clicking together as they walked made such a racket. I have never heard this anywhere else.

Dennis Hardisty: Stewart Williamson Yes Benny was my uncle. He passed away in 2005.

Day 3 Cowboy Pictures by Stewart

Bill Bedford - cousin on Hunt side

Day 3 ranch pics. This one is a sure nuff blast from the past. This is Bill Bedford, a cousin of my grandmother's. On the back of the photo is written ~ Bill at his cow camp in Mexico. No date or exact location. From what I know, I can guess it would be northern Sonora in the very early 1900's. My grandmother's family were from the deep south. The Civil War took them from being people of means to people with nothing. They migrated to Texas first, then on to southeastern Arizona and northern Mexico. They all wound up in the cattle business. My dad said Bill had the rep of being a real good hand, and plenty ropey. Dad also said Bill was so fluent in Spanish that if a Mexican heard him talk but couldn't see him, they would assume Bill was a Mexican. Part of me wishes I could have lived back then. Today I nominate 2 of my cowboy artist amigos, Stephen Lee and Stephen Jones. These two guys live the cowboy life that they sculpt.

Some comments:

 Dale Parker Thanks for the picture and the story! I worked for an old man here in Fort Davis. He ran away from Bandera when he was 12 and was raised by one of the ranching families here. He could speak Spanish as fluently as one native-born. He cowboyed here when the Davis Mtns were unfenced. Not many of those kind left.

Stewart Williamson Dale, how could you pick a prettier to place to punch cows than the Davis Mountains back in open range times. Elmer Kelton's book "The Smiling Country" was based on that. I'll be at Alpine for the Trappings in April. We need to get together and have a pow wow!

Dale Parker Thanks for the picture and the story! I worked for an old man here in Fort Davis. He ran away from Bandera when he was 12 and was raised by one of the ranching families here. He could speak Spanish as fluently as one native-born. He cowboyed here when the Davis Mtns were unfenced. Not many of those kind left.

Stewart Williamson Dale, how could you pick a prettier to place to punch cows than the Davis Mountains back in open range times. Elmer Kelton's book "The Smiling Country" was based on that. I'll be at Alpine for the Trappings in April. We need to get together and have a pow wow!

Julie Carter BIG STOUT horse!! What a cool pic from a long time ago! Wagon AND adobe in the background ...makes me want to explore.

Stewart Williamson Thanks Julie, me too! My dad spent a chunk of time in Mexico with that part of the family in the early 1930's. He had so many wonderful stories. A page out of the old west!

Betty Williamson Everyone thinks this is a big horse, but maybe it’s a small horse and Bill was a teeny-tiny cowboy. Alas. We will never know. One more mystery from THE FAMILY PICTURE BOXES.

Betty Williamson Probably the stole the horse...or the saddle. That would make him more in line with our relatives.

Stewart Williamson Quien sabe? Part of that side of the family were supposed to have been horse thieves in Scotland before they came here. Maybe Bill was like Hank Williams Jr, just carrying on the family tradition lol

Sherry Lee Littlefield Snyder Stewart Williamson it was the Williamson's that are part of the McKay clan in Scotland. Scoundrels...

Day 2 Cowboy Pictures by Stewart

Branding at the Jody Ranch

Branding at the Jody Ranch just north of Milnesand, NM in 1969. It's known as the Cremer Ranch today. I nominate Martha Hammond-Richardson Hardwick and Leigh Hammond Willmon. Martha and Leigh grew up in a ranching family with deep roots in eastern NM. I'm betting they have some great photos.

 

Some comments :

Betty Williamson Will see if we can add more names...I've got the original on this one in a scrapbook. Will pry it loose and see if Fern Hay (who took it) happened to be better about writing on the backs than we were!).

Betty Williamson Here is what the original photo says on the back: "Jim Williamson on horse, Jay Carroll, Ben Fuller, Lynn Medlin, Ted Williamson, Dale Brown with brown hat, Turtle Tucker dehorning." Now, yes, that is definitely our dad on the horse. Jay Carroll is in the light-colored shirt with the gray hat; Ben Fuller is the tall thin guy with the light blue shirt standing and looking the other way. Is that Lynn next to him with the white shirt and black hat? Is that possibly Ted Williamson branding the center calf? The man standing by the right calf with the brown hat is our uncle Norm Godwin (our mom's brother) who was visiting from Ohio. If Dale Brown is in this photo, I'm not picking him out. Turtle is in the plaid shirt dehorning the calf on the right. Katie Montgomery Medlin, Kalyn Medlin Pinedo, Melissa Tucker, Patty Maloney Williamson Lee Ann Brown Foster, tagging all of you to see if you recognize anyone.

Kalyn Medlin Pinedo Betty Williamson I think dad is dehorning the one Turtle is flanking.

Stewart Williamson At the time this photo was taken I would have been 8 years old. Still relegated to running the dope bucket. The nastiest job ever invented! It was a big damn relief when I got big enough to leave that job behind and start flanking calves.

Julie Carter In 1969 we were still building a fire to heat irons :) ...but then, we had trees! :)

Stewart Williamson Julie, I can just about count the times I've been at branding with a wood fire on one hand. It's sure a better deal! I never did like the roar of a propane burner. Unfortunately, wood is in short supply here on the Llano.

Amanda N Belcher And just like other pictures of cowboys I’ve seen, this one could’ve been taken las summer. Cowboys (REAL ONES) forever look the same. Same clothes, same boots, same hats..... just different faces ♥️♥️♥️

Stewart Williamson Amanda, I never thought of it like that. That's pretty cool!

Betty Williamson Melissa Tucker, I wouldn’t rule out your dad being in this photo...the guy in the brown hat and plaid shirt kneeling by the calf on the right sure could be him, I think.

Stewart Williamson Melissa, I blew the pic up and I think Betty is correct. I’m betting that’s Turtle on the front leg.

Day 1 Cowboy Pictures by Stewart - Jim in Winter

Jim and Chief in the snow 12/1957

My compadre Justin Johnson nominated me for the ranch picture deal. And our compadre Dino Cornay warned me that I better participate, or face dire consequences! So here goes. This was my dad in December of 1957, back when it used to snow here.

Some comments:
 Eldon Merrick Miss your Dad and that good strong cup of Java when we brought corn to the ranch!

Stewart Williamson Thanks Eldon, he and your grandad were two fine fellers from the old school.

Eldon Merrick Stewart Williamson yes they were, too bad that mentality couldn't have prevailed in the current generations! A mans word was his bond and meant everything! We can just keep trying to hold up our end! Thanks for sharing, look forward to the rest of the week!

Harlin Stobb This was that picture I was talking about the last time we talked Stewart. B4 they had winter clothing

Stewart Williamson Yes sir Harlone!

Lisa Walker A man outstanding in his field!

Stewart Williamson Thanks Lisa!