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Midway Directory · By type

Rodeos and stampedes

A rodeo or stampede: roughstock and timed events such as bronc and bull riding, roping and barrel racing, often with a dance, a parade or a small midway alongside.

A rodeo is the cowboy’s working day turned into a contest: bronc and bull riding, roping, steer wrestling and barrel racing. It grew from the skills of Mexican vaqueros, became a show in the 1880s at Pecos and Prescott, and reached Canada with the first Calgary Stampede in 1912. Most rodeos bring a dance, a parade or a midway.

What it is

The word comes from the Spanish rodear, to go around, and means a roundup: gathering cattle to count, inspect and brand them. As a sport it puts those same jobs in an arena against the clock or the judges. Roughstock events (saddle bronc, bareback, bull riding) are scored; timed events (tie-down roping, steer wrestling, team roping, barrel racing) are raced.

A rodeo can be a weekend in a small town or ten days in Calgary. In the West it is often the centre of a fair or exhibition, and rodeos and stampedes are listed as their own type because so many towns build their summer around one.

History, era by era

1500s–1700s
Horses reached Mexico with Cortés in 1519 and cattle followed in 1521. The vaquero, the Mexican herdsman, worked those cattle and gave the cowboy his rope, saddle, spurs, chaps and the word rodeo.12
1860s–1880s
After the US Civil War, cattle drives and big ranches made the range cowboy, and Fourth of July contests let cowboys test their riding and roping against other outfits. One early bronco contest on record was held at Deer Trail, Colorado, in 1869.1
1882–1888
Buffalo Bill staged his first Wild West show in North Platte, Nebraska, in 1882. Pecos, Texas, held a rodeo with prizes in 1883, and Prescott, Arizona, held one with paid admission in 1888.1
1888–1897
Prescott dates professional rodeo to July 4, 1888, when local merchants offered cash prizes and Juan Leivas took the first title; the town says it has held a rodeo every year since. Cheyenne Frontier Days began in 1897, and saddle bronc has been part of it from the start.34
1903–1923
Canada’s first rodeo was held at Raymond, Alberta, in 1903. Guy Weadick staged the first Calgary Stampede in 1912, six days and more than 40,000 spectators a day; it became yearly in 1923, when it joined the Calgary exhibition.25
1929–1944
Rodeo committees formed the Rodeo Association of America in 1929. Cowboys struck at the Boston Garden in 1936 and won a bigger share of the purse, which led to the professional cowboys’ association in the US and the Canadian Rodeo Cowboys’ Association in 1944.12
1959–today
The first National Finals Rodeo was held in Dallas in 1959. Youth rodeo organizations now carry the sport on to the next generation.1

The midway connection

Rodeo and the midway have shared a ground for a century. The Calgary Stampede runs its rodeo beside an agricultural fair, exhibit halls, a stage show and a large midway with rides and sideshows. In BC, the Cloverdale Rodeo brings a country fair with a midway alongside its arena.56

Even at a small-town rodeo the crowd walks a row between the grandstand and the parking: food trucks, western wear, leatherwork and local crafts. That walk, before the first bronc and after the last bull, is where a booth like ours meets people.

Wherever people walk a row of booths, the midway is there in some form: the full kind, with rides, games of skill and food joints, or the quieter kind, with craft tables, home baking and a booth like ours. That walk, with family and friends and something to look at every few steps, is what this directory is about.

Two facts worth knowing

Questions people ask

What was the first rodeo?

It depends on the test. Deer Trail, Colorado, held a bronco contest in 1869; Pecos, Texas, gave prizes in 1883; Prescott, Arizona, charged admission in 1888 and calls itself the oldest rodeo.13

What does rodeo mean?

Roundup. It comes from the Spanish rodear, to go around, the gathering of cattle to count and brand them.2

What is the difference between a rodeo and a stampede?

Mostly the name. Calgary called the rodeo it began in 1912 the Stampede, and the word stuck to Canadian rodeos with a celebration around them.5

Sources

  1. Texas State Historical Association, Handbook of Texas: Rodeos. Read on · reference
  2. The Canadian Encyclopedia: Rodeo. Read on · reference
  3. Prescott Frontier Days: History of the Prescott Rodeo. Read on · official
  4. Cheyenne Frontier Days: History. Read on · official
  5. The Canadian Encyclopedia: Calgary Stampede. Read on · reference
  6. Cloverdale Rodeo and Country Fair: Entertainment and attractions. Read on · official

Short listings from the census

Checked and sourced, but without a full page yet. Each one links to its row on its province or state page.

The Midway Mailbag

New listings as they arrive. Notes on new listings.

Running a fair, a booth or a fundraiser?

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All kinds of fairs · Midway Directory

Written by The Midway Machine. Last checked 2026-10-21.

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