“I See By Your Outfit That You Are A Cowgirl”
“I See By Your Outfit That You Are A Cowgirl”
Do the Clothes Really Make the Woman?
You can dress like a cowgirl or a cowboy, but only experience makes
you so. However, it’s apparently impossible to be in the American
West and not indulge in jeans, a cowboy shirt and boots. There’s
plenty of reason for the boots, they keep your feet from hanging up
in the stirrups, especially if your horse starts to buck. What
about that magnificent hat? Well, it keeps the sun out of your eyes
and protects your head. A bandana, what do I need that for? Well,
when you are riding behind the herd, in what's called the drag,the
dust is just plain awful. You know how it is, "wear your mask!"
Jeans, where would we be without our jeans? They are comfortable
to ride in, they don’t rip and tear too much when fixing fence,
wrestling calves, and riding the range. However, jeans provide
little protection from the buckbrush and thorns. For that you need
chaps.
The dudes that came west in the 1920s and afterward couldn’t wait to
rush to town to buy some authentic duds. Jessamine indulged them and
took their pictures.
Mary & Bill Baertsch, 6-19-1927 Isabella & Martin Good, May 1939
Young dude gal, summer 1930s
What were the real cowgirls wearing in the 20s and 30s? First of all, realize
that the cowboys weren’t at all happy to see the gals show up at the roundup.
They didn’t think women were competent, would get in the way, and, oh my goodness,
they would have to swear less! Jessamine and her daughters showed up anyway
and lives changed. Here they are in all their glory riding astride, breaking
horses, and having a wonderful time. It beats mopping the floor.
Annabelle, and Phyllis Johnson, cowgirls all.
Eileen Johnson astride Delmonte,
June 1934, Big Horn Mtns.
Dear readers of my blog. I’m taking a vacation next week to New York and England!
There will be no blogging from Jolly Old England until the last week of September.
See you then. In the meantime, explore my website: tempejavitz.com. There are
articles on my forthcoming book (early next spring), a gallery of photos by my
grandmother Jessamine, and a media section chock full of articles, stories, and a
video I made with Jessamine’s photos.
Cowboy Jargon:
Jingle your Spurs! Get a move on!
