Fort Worth is hot, a dry heat with no humidity in the air, the mid afternoon sun is glaringly bright and burns into you, the sky is bright blue with not a cloud to be seen. At 4pm the temperature is at its hottest for the day 29c. Its Saturday and the town is buzzing with people.
Fort Worth Historic Stockyards sits on the edge of the city that has a population of 833,000, it retains it western charm and has a look harking back to its heyday’s of the 1880s. Uneven cobblestones pave the sidewalks of Exchange Avenue which is the main street. It has wooden verandas covering the sidewalks of old timber framed stores with big plate windows facing the street. This part of town smells rural…the scent of shit mingles in the air from the stock and rodeo holding pens, combining with the smell of sweet fragrant BBQ smoke from the bars and saloons that line the avenue.
The town of Fort Worth was first established in 1849 as an army outpost overlooking the Trinity River. It was the western outpost for the Chisolm Trail where ranchers drove cattle from San Antonio to Fort Worth and then up into Kansas for distribution by railroad. Back in the day Fort Worth was called Hells Half Acre, a den of saloons, gambling and prostitution as business capitalised on taking the cowboys coin in the last major town before they traveled north.
It was estimated that over 10,000,000 head of cattle were driven through the town in its hey day of the 1880s. The 1900s saw the town evolve and the major industry of abattoirs and stock sales evolved.
Today the Stockyard area relys on tourism and still has a small but thriving cattle sales yard.
Fondly referred to as Cowtown, Fort Worth reflects on its droving heritage and twice a day a (small) herd of a dozen longhorns are driven down the main street. They certainly are solid looking beasts and Rosie didn’t appreciate how amazingly long the horns actually are, they can grow to a span of six feet wide and are used for protecting there young against coyote attacks in the wild.
Rosie was watching the herd in their corral before the parade….they scratch each other with the tips of their horns…and lick each other quite a lot….Rosie certainly wouldn’t like to get on the wrong side of those horns.
There is a lot of cowboy hats and cowboy boots in this town, Texans are very casual and friendly. The men have a genuine gentlemanly charming nature and it extends to all ages, doors are held open, no one cuts you off on the footpath, people stand aside and say ‘after you’, everyone acknowledges everyone else with a morning/afternoon. When we start talking, everyone asks where we are from and welcomes us to Texas…not the United States….Texas. They then ask where we are going and give us advice on the best places to see, in Texas, and wish us well for the remainder of our ‘vacation’ finishing with, ‘y’all enjoy your stay in Texas, after all you are in the best state to visit’. Rosie loves the loyalty of the American people to their homeland….the Texans have taken it to a totally new level.
Friday and Saturday is Rodeo night in Fort Worth at The Cowtown Coliseum, Rosie bought tickets in advance and had second row seating.
The arena is indoors and air conditioned and would seat about 3,500 people. Eight foot high railings protect us from the animals and the dirt arena floor was racked nice and smooth, the lights dimmed and a beautiful girl on horseback rode around the arena flying the stars and stripes and them the crowd stood and sang the national anthem led by a group of acapella singers…always makes the hair on Rosie’s arms stand on end. Then the fun begins, the professional bull riders were up first, bucking bulls charging out of the gates and besting the riders.
A trick roper gave us entertainment next followed by the bucking broncos and calf roping. The barrel racing was a ladies sport and man, were those horses and gals quick. Interval had all the young kids come down into the arena and they had to chase a young calf down to retrieve the flag and win a prize. Another round of bull riding followed and then the ladies calf roping. The master of ceremonies kept the night moving with his commentary and jokes plus great rock n roll tracks kept the crowd pumped during the competition.
Our big night out at the rodeo even inspired us to give it a go!
As the crowd came flooding out of the rodeo a country band was set up and playing on the lawn in front of the coliseum and the smallest rodeo clown in Texas was hamming it up for the crowd and letting people take photos with him.
The White Elephant Saloon was jumping….well, they always seem to have a band playing and couples doing laps around the dance floor any time of the day from lunchtime till closing. During the day the three piece bands play for tips and are not afraid to call out anyone who has been enjoying their music and try to leave without paying. Its a dingy, smoky ….yes, you are allowed to smoke inside here, dark place which has been around since the 20s and the dust and grime attest to this but it is a lively place and has its own charm.
Hundreds of hats are nailed to the walls and ceiling….its owners names are written on a board under them. Some are old patrons and regulars of the establishment that have passed on, hence the birth/death dates on them. Other hats belong to famous and not so famous singers that have performed at the bar. The back wall is entirely taken up with display cases of…china white elephants…..sent in and collected from all around the world….if you want, just write your name on the wall here to, to commemorate your visit. There isn’t a place on the bare walls that hasn’t been signed.
Rosie and The Operator are off to bed now, tomorrow we are off to the State Fair of Texas for a bit of fun on the midway, Rosie is keen to ride the Wheel of Texas and to try the famous sideshow corny dogs.
