Troy Fort Collection

Collection

Identifier: 1988-019

Staff Only

Digital Images from the Troy Fort Collection

Scope and Contents

The Troy Fort Collection contains six photographs of Troy Fort, including three which show him calf roping.

Dates

1955 - 1966

Creator

Fort, Troy, 1917-1993 (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

The Troy Fort Collection has no restrictions and is available for research. If you are interested in researching the materials, please contact the Dickinson Research Center to make an appointment.

Conditions Governing Use

The Troy Fort Collection is the property of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. Materials, even if owned by the NCWHM, may be protected under third party copyright. It is the patron’s responsibility to research and secure any such additional copyright and pay any required fees or royalties. It is not the intention of the NCWHM to impede upon any third party rights, and the NCWHM cannot be held responsible if the patron is involved in legal action due to violation of third party copyright claims.

Biographical / Historical

With a rodeo career spanning more than fifty years, Troy Fort competed at the West of the Pecos Rodeo for more than forty of those years.

Troy’s many achievements include events such as New York’s Madison Square Garden to the Calgary Stampede in Canada and being crowned the World Champion Calf Roper in both 1947 and 1949.

Troy Fort, a native of Lea County, New Mexico, learned to rope with the best and that included having Jake McClure as one of his coaches.

He was known as a great stylist at calf roping and was picture perfect on his runs. People watched him with awe even when he failed to win. Troy became well-known for his calf roping style. He dismounted on the near side and approached the calf in a “business-like” manner, delivering slack ahead of his run. It was his “trademark.”

Fort was also famous for his horses, including a bay gelding named Streak and of course, the famous Baldy, a horse that he bought from Katherine Burk after the untimely death of her husband, Clyde. After Fort’s competitive days ended he served as the steer roping director for the PRCA for four years and served on the Rodeo Foundation Board for four years. He was inducted into the PRCA Hall of Fame in 1979. Fort was inducted into the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum’s Rodeo Hall of Fame in 1986.

Troy was also one of the founding members of the Lea County Fair and Rodeo in Lovington, New Mexico, and faithfully attended the yearly West of the Pecos Rodeo event.

Troy was born on December 8, 1917, in Lea County, New Mexico, and attended school in Lovington. He died January 2, 1993.