OKLAHOMA CITY, OK — The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum® in Oklahoma City will induct Wild West performer Pawnee Bill and Texas rancher and photographer Bob Moorhouse into the Hall of Great Westerners during its annual Western Heritage Awards. The gala will be held April 17, 2010.
Induction into the Hall of Great Westerners honors an individual who promotes America’s rich Western heritage through leadership and patronage of art, business, industry, environmental, education, humanitarian, government or philanthropic organizations.
Born Gordon William Lillie in Bloomington, Illinois, in 1860, Pawnee Bill was a Wild West performer, buffalo hunter and Indian interpreter. Considered to be one of the last legends of the Old West, Pawnee Bill was a friend to the Pawnee Indians, and eventually went on to entertain and educate international crowds with his famous Wild West Shows.
Pawnee Bill moved into Indian Territory in 1875, and quickly immersed himself in the life and language of the Pawnee Indians. He accompanied the Pawnee on their annual buffalo hunts and learned to live among the tribe. He soon became a teacher to the Pawnee Indians and served as an interpreter and secretary to an Indian agent. He later became an Indian interpreter and performer for “Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show,” which provided inspiration for the Western enthusiast.
In 1888, Pawnee Bill organized his own Wild West Show where his wife, May, became an impressive act for her marksmanship and riding. Two decades later, he merged his show with that of his childhood role model, known as Buffalo Bill. The popular attraction became known as “The Two Bills’ Show.” The combined traveling attraction later became “Buffalo Bill’s Wild West and Pawnee Bill’s Great Far East Show.” The new spectacle featured Mexican cowboys, Pawnee and Sioux scouts, Arab jugglers and Chinese and Japanese performers. In 1930, he built “Pawnee Bill’s Old Town and Trading Post” in Pawnee, Oklahoma. The tourist attraction helped preserve the Old West with rustic cabins, buffalo steak restaurants, Indian dancing, tepees and grazing buffalo.
Bob Moorhouse is an established rancher, horse breeder and photographer from Guthrie, Texas. He was vice-president and general manager of the Pitchfork Land and Cattle Co. of Guthrie, Texas; Benjamin, Texas; and Eskridge, Kansas. Pitchfork predominantly raises commercial Hereford and Crossbred cattle, as well as American Quarter Horses. He has been with Pitchfork for 25 years and currently serves on its board of directors and is an ambassador of the ranch.
Almost 20 years ago Moorhouse became a successful photographer. A collection of his works became the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame & Museum’s first traveling exhibition. Entitled “Hoofbeats on the Pitchfork Ranch,” the collection has traveled extensively throughout the United States and Europe. He has been published in numerous publications, such as The Cattleman, Western Horseman, Quarterhorse Magazine, American Cowboy and Range. His photography also is displayed at major oil companies, businesses and private offices.
Moorhouse was awarded “Horseman of the Year” in 2006 by Western Horseman. He has won a Reserve Championship and two National Ranch Working Horse Championships in Abilene, Texas, with his horse "Tex.” Moorhouse also is an inductee in the Texas Tech University and Texas Cowboy Halls of Fame.
Pawnee Bill and Moorhouse fulfill the criteria for induction into the Hall of Great Westerners which requires an individual to have made outstanding contributions to the advancement of Western heritage and traditions over a lifetime. An inductee also must be a person who promoted America’s rich Western heritage through their leadership and patronage of art, business, industry, environmental, educational, humanitarian, government or philanthropic organizations. The individual also must exemplify the traditional Western ideals of honesty, integrity and self-sufficiency.
The 2010 Western Heritage Awards are sponsored by the ConocoPhillips Company, Wrangler, W.S. Bowlware Construction, Inc. and The Oklahoman, with support from Museum Partners Devon Energy Corporation, Chesapeake Energy Corporation and the E.L. and Thelma Gaylord Foundation.
For reservations or more information about the 2010 Western Heritage Awards, call (405) 478-2250, Ext. 219. The National Cowboy Museum, America’s Premier Western Heritage Museum ™, is supported through memberships and private and corporate donations. Nationally accredited, the Museum is located in Oklahoma City’s Adventure District at the junction of I-44 and I-35. For more information about the Museum or for a calendar of events, visit www.nationalcowboymuseum.org or call (405) 478-2250.
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