The legends of Big Spring
Heritage Museum’s Legends and Legacies to honor 7 cowboys and cowgirls Tuesday
The Western way of life runs strong in Howard County, Texas: ranchers and wildcat oil drillers eking out a living in our harsh terrain and climate, working to strike it big in cattle or horses or cotton or oil. The Heritage Museum of Big Spring has been honoring that spirit for all of its nearly 50-year history, and more directly for 17 years through its Legends and Legacies annual event. At that annual dinner, the museum usually presents six men and women that exemplify that particular Big Spring brand of Western attitude for inclusion in its Cowboy and Cowgirl Hall of Fame. This year, the Museum is adding a new category and selecting Joseph Weir Barnett to receive the first honor as "Cowboy Legend." Here are some brief biographies on this year's inductees. For more photos, see Page 12.
MARTIN FRYAR
Martin Fryar always wanted to be a cowboy. He was raised on a farm and ranch in Howard County. He loved to ride his horse and practice roping. His favorite event was calf roping. When he started competing, he was going to amateur rodeos. He went to his first rodeo in Stamford when he was sixteen years old. He went with Rip Bailey and they slept on the ground after the rodeo. Horace Ranking and E.P. Birkhead were most instrumental in his learning to calf rope. He tried to pattern his roping after his neighbors, Toots Mansfield. He was a great man and an inspiration to Martin in rodeo. Martin met and married, Gwen Roberts (now deceased) from Garden City on December 20, 1950. He then became a father to Debbie (McDonald), Lesia (Sturm) and Tammy (Green). He tried to make barrel racers out of his girls without much success! However, his girls did help him practice roping calves. In 1978, Martin won two saddles at the Cowboy Reunion in Stanford, Texas. One saddle for calf roping and the other for double mugging. He won the double mugging with his partner, Denny Mullins in 1978. Throughout the years, he won enough saddles and buckles to give to each of his children with plenty left over! In his senior years, Martin competed in the National Old Timers Rodeo Association. Most of these rodeos required him to travel all over the U.S. and into Canada. In 1991, Martin competed in the over 60 age group. He led the calf roping standings from start to finish. Martin won the World Calf Roping Championship in NOTRA for the 1991 season. He also won the National Roping Association Championship. In doing this, he only competed in three of the twelve NRA rodeos to claim this title! If you asked him how he accomplished this, he would probably give most of the credit to "Puddin", his favorite horse. Martin then met and married Lenita Cox. From this marriage, he gained a stepson, Billy Ray Cox. Currently Martin and Lenita boast of having eleven
grandchildren and fourteen great grandchildren.
Martin has since taken up golf and left the roping to the "young guns" but he is still a cowboy at heart. He is grateful for God, his family and friends he made along the way, the great horses that he trained and rode, and the opportunity to be able to compete in rodeos across the country.
R.G & CHERYL CLICK
R.G. (Glenn) Click was born in Grayson County on June 3, 1926. He served in WWII before arriving in Big Spring to work with the Southwestern Bell Telephone Company. Click's love of horses was a passion for him. For more than 40 years he broke and trained horses for the public and showed championship halter horses, throughout the state. He helped countless youth in Howard County for years and was honored by the Howard County 4-H Club as a "Friend of 4-H" recipient, the highest award the 4-H organization can bestow upon an individual or business. He was recognized for his work in helping with 4-H horse judging teams and support and assistance with their annual junior rodeo. Click also provided support to the annual Howard College Collegiate Rodeo in Big Spring and horse related activities with the Howard County Fair. In 1990 Click retired from training horses but still enjoyed "riding a good horse" at every opportunity. He served for 20 years as Director of the Howard County Fair Association and served for more than 15 years as director of the Big Spring Cowboy Reunion and Rodeo Board. In 2003, The Big Spring Cowboy Reunion and Rodeo were extremely proud to dedicate the rodeo and events to longtime friend and supporter R.G. Click.
Cheryl Click was born on February 2, 1950 in Big Spring, Texas. She was the youngest of 5 children born to Robert Cleo and Marcella Carter. Cheryl worked at various places before eventually going to work for Texas Electric Company. On November - 1986, the Telephone Company employee merged with the Electric Company employee- as the two became husband and wife. Together, Click and Cheryl had 13-acres, north of Big Spring, where they raised quarter horses.
On June 12, 1994, Cheryl won $27.2 million dollars in the Texas lottery. Their dream of owning a ranch and being cattle ranchers could now be fulfilled as they purchased not one but three ranches and stocking them with cattle. With extra help and guidance from the ranch foreman, Byron Pope, Cheryl started working with cutting horses and rode in the Non Pro and Open.
R.G. (Glenn) Click passed away on March 20, 2004. Cheryl says she is now a full time "Piddler."
TERRY HIMES
Theresa (Terry) Ann Lewis was born on February 10, 1954, in Wichita Falls, Texas to Jack and Thay Lewis. Jack was in the Air Force and stationed at Webb Air Force Base, which brought the family to Big Spring in 1956. He then owned and ran Jack Lewis Cadillac from 1964-1985. Terry's passion for riding horses began in the mid-1960s, starting with play days at the Youth Horsemen Arena. She advanced to the American Junior Rodeo Association events in 1967, winning numerous buckles and saddles through 1969.
Terry then joined the professional rank of the Girls Rodeo Association (now known as WPRA) in late 1969. She went on to qualify for the National Finals Rodeo in 1970, 1972 and 1973 on several different horses. Terry married champion bull rider Jack Himes in 1970 and they welcomed their eldest daughter Elana in June 1971. Elana was quickly introduced to rodeo life, with her first rodeo occurring in Springdale, Arkansas over the 4th of July.
Terry and Jack attended Howard College and were on the rodeo team from 1974-1977 where they both qualified numerous times for the College National Finals Rodeo.
After college, Terry continued to ride and train horses - staying close to home once their youngest daughter Jana was born in 1981. Jana would share her mom's passion, ultimately leading to the need for more barrel horses!
Terry and Jack now own Shroyer Motor Company, GMC dealership in Big Spring and live on a ranch in Garza County where Terry raises barrel horses with daughter Jana.
JACK BUCHANAN
Jack Wolf Buchanan was known as a successful farmer, rancher, cowboy, conservationist, public servant and civic leader in Howard County, but the titles he cherished the most are loving husband and family man. He loved God, his country, his family and making folks laugh.
As a proud part of a Howard County pioneer family, Jack was born in the R-Bar community, northwest of Coahoma to his parents, Sam F. and Ola Buchanan. He lived in Howard County most of his life. He served in the US Navy during WWII and upon his honorable discharge he entered Texas Tech University, graduating in 1952 with a degree in Animal Husbandry. At Tech he was a member of the Aggie Club, Block and Bridle, Rodeo Team and was a charter member of the Rodeo Association. He won the All- Around championship at the 1949 Tech Rodeo and the Bull Riding title in 1950.
In 1952, Jack married the love of his life, Mildred Wilson, of Ralls, TX. Together they farmed and ranched in the Luther community for many years. Mildred was also a schoolteacher for 36 years.
Jack wanted to make this world a better place for those coming after him. Whether it was practicing conservation of natural resources, getting involved in civic organizations or serving as a County Commissioner or Justice of the Peace, Jack was never one to sit back or wait on someone else to do something.
He served on the Big Spring Cowboy Reunion and Rodeo Committee for 35 years. For over 20 years, Jack served as a volunteer and Judge for the Howard County Junior Rodeo as well as a Junior Livestock Show Director. He served many years on the Texas Tech Rodeo Advisory Committee and was inducted in the Tech Rodeo Hall of Fame in 1985. To help deserving rodeo students, Jack and Mildred established a scholarship several years ago for Tech rodeo students.
KENNY THOMPSON
Kenny Thompson was a lifelong resident of Howard County. He was a successful businessman as well as a horseman and roper. Since 1945, Thompson Construction Company has designed, built and remolded many homes and businesses in and around Big Spring. There are many beautiful homes built on ranches in the area.
Kenny's real passion was for roping. He started calf roping at the age of 15 at Dr. Bennett's arena. His first rodeo competition was at Stamford, Tx in 1948 and his last was in San Antonio in 2001. The family spent many weekends at roping's. Daughter Linda said "as children, we thought everyone hauled a horse trailer behind the family car." Over the years Kenny roped all over Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Arizona and Nevada. He roped in open rodeos, jack pots, and professional senior rodeos. He won many buckles and saddles. He won "World Champion Break Away Roper" in the Senior Pro Rodeo in 1976 and 1977 and won in the "National Senior Pro Rodeo finals" in Reno, 1991. Kenny and Neta Thompson had three children, Clay, Linda (Fox) and Debbie (Allen) (now deceased), seven grandchildren and 24 great grandchildren.
Quote from Kenny: "I have made true friends across the west because of this sport. Roping was such a great part of my life and I loved it. I went through five great horses and four good women. I have no regrets." Kenny passed away in 2016.
JOSEPH WEIR BARNETT is the Heritage Museum's Cowboy Legend.
Col C.C. Slaughter was known as the "Cattle King of Texas." By 1905 he owned 40,000 head of cattle and oversaw over a million acres. Slaughter furnished his early cowboys four horses of their choice from the headquarters corral, a saddle, $25.00 a month, bunkhouse privileges and "chuck." To be entrusted as one of Slaughter's cowboys was an esteemed honor given to Joseph Weir Barnett.
Joe was born in 1867 and moved to Howard County in the early 1880's along with his parents Dr. and Mrs. Joseph Weir Barnett and 5 siblings. Joe wanted to become a doctor like his father however, the high cost of medical school eliminated that possibility. Instead he became a cowboy. He started work with the Long S (Slaughter) ranch and joined the other cowboys in long trail rides. He was Trail Boss and oversaw the last herd of Longhorn Steers that were herded to Wyoming in 1892. September 5, 1894, Joseph married his young sweetheart, Lillie Seals. The couple had 9 children. Joseph realized he would have to work in town to support his growing family. He served two terms as county commissioner from 1906-1910. In partnership with his brother-in-law, W.R. Cole, he operated a livery stable at the present-day location of the settles Hotel. He continued to ranch his own land while affiliating himself with the J&W Fisher Store and the Southern Ice Co. Joe died in 1938.