Aloha Rodeo: Three Hawaiian Cowboys, the World's Greatest

Aloha Rodeo: Three Hawaiian Cowboys, the World's Greatest Rodeo, and a Hidden History of the American West

TheÂ triumphantÂ trueÂ story of the native Hawaiian cowboys whoÂ shocked America at the 1908 world rodeo championshipsA Pacific Northwest Book Award finalist"Groundbreaking. â€¦ A must-read. ... An essential addition." â€”True WestIn August 1908, three unknown riders arrived in Cheyenne, Wyoming, their hats adorned with wildflowers, to compete in the worldâ€™s greatest rodeo. Steer-roping virtuoso Ikua Purdy and his cousins Jack Low and Archie Kaâ€™auâ€™a had travelled 4,200 miles from Hawaii, of all places, to test themselves against the toughest riders in the West. Dismissed by whites, who considered themselves the only true cowboys, the native Hawaiians would astonish the country, returning home championsâ€”and American legends. An unforgettable human drama set against the rough-knuckled frontier, David Wolman and Julian Smithâ€™sÂ Aloha RodeoÂ unspools the fascinating and little-known true story of the Hawaiian cowboys, or paniolo, whose 1908 adventure upended the conventional history of the American West. What few understood when the three paniolo rode into Cheyenne is that the Hawaiians were no underdogs. They were the product of a deeply engrained cattle culture that was twice as old as that of the Great Plains, for Hawaiians had been chasing cattle over the islandsâ€™ rugged volcanic slopes and through thick tropical forests since the late 1700s.Tracing the life story of Purdy and his cousins, Wolman and Smith delve into the dual histories of ranching and cowboys in the islands, and the meteoric rise and sudden fall of Cheyenne, â€œHoly City of the Cow.â€ At the turn of the twentieth century, larger-than-life personalities like â€œBuffalo Billâ€ Cody and Theodore Roosevelt capitalized on a national obsession with the Wild West and helped transform Cheyenneâ€™s annual Frontier Days celebration into an unparalleled rodeo spectacle, the â€œDaddy of â€˜em All.â€The hopes of all Hawaii rode on the three ridersâ€™ shoulders during those dusty days in August 1908. The U.S. had forcibly annexed the islands just a decade earlier. The young Hawaiians brought the pride of a people struggling to preserve their cultural identity and anxious about their future under the rule of overlords an ocean away. In Cheyenne, they didnâ€™t just astound the locals; they also overturned simplistic thinking about cattle country, the binary narrative of â€œcowboys versus Indians,â€ and the very concept of the Wild West. Blending sport and history, while exploring questions of identity, imperialism, and race,Â Aloha RodeoÂ spotlights an overlooked and riveting chapter in the saga of the American West.
Country USA
Manufacturer Mariner Books
Binding Kindle Edition
ItemPartNumber SUVELAM
Model SUVELAM
ReleaseDate 2020-04-28
Format Kindle eBook
EANs 9780062836021

Country	USA
Manufacturer	Mariner Books
Binding	Kindle Edition
ItemPartNumber	SUVELAM
Model	SUVELAM
ReleaseDate	2020-04-28
Format	Kindle eBook
EANs	9780062836021

Aloha Rodeo: Three Hawaiian Cowboys, the World's Greatest Rodeo, and a Hidden History of the American West

Customers who purchased this also purchased....