ND Cowboy Hall of Fame - Archived Articles

July 12, 2001

---15 NEW INDUCTEES SELECTED FOR COWBOY HALL OF FAME---

The 180 Trustees of the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame (NDCHF) have selected 11 individuals, one ranch, one event and a revered bucking horse for induction into the Hall of Fame for year 2001. The new inductees represent nearly every region of the state from North Dakota including: Fargo; Watford City; Halliday; Dickinson; McHenry County; the Standing Rock Reservation; Marmarth; Zap; Minot; Fort Yates; Williston; the Fort Berthold Reservation; Grant County; and Emmons County.

Those selected will be formally inducted in special ceremonies in Medora on August 4, and in Sentinel Butte on August 5 when the Hall of Fame holds its fourth round of inductions.

In the Modern-era Rodeo Division the honorees for 2001 are Wilfred “Sonny” Ehr of Minot and Delvin Reich of Zap.

Sonny Ehr had a rodeo career that spanned 20 years and included numerous roping and steer wrestling titles in high school, college and professional rodeo. In 1970 he competed in the National Finals Rodeo.

Delvin Reich won 15 NDRA titles while competing in steer wrestling, saddle bronc and bareback from 1959 to 1965. Reich also rode at some of the nation’s biggest rodeos but always balanced his rodeo career with his ranching operation. Reich today operates his ranch near Zap in Mercer County.

In the Pre-1940 Rodeo Division, Trustees selected Elmer Clark of Marmarth and George Defender of the Standing Rock Reservation.

Elmer Clark gained fame as one of the state’s best bronc riders in the teens and 1920’s. “Clarky” could, would and did ride anything with four legs. He won numerous bronc riding titles and in 1919 rode the never before ridden “Tipperary”. He continued as a rodeo judge and team roper into the 1950’s.

George Defender began competing as a bronc rider in 1914 and won titles at Madison Square Garden and Calgary. He rode most of the country’s famous bucking horses and also competed in bareback, buffalo riding, calf roping and bull dogging. Defender died following a rodeo accident in 1933.

In the Pre-1940 Ranching Division, Trustees picked Jay Grantier of McKenzie County and Andrew Voigt who ranched on the Fort Berthold Reservation

Jay Grantier twice came north from Texas with cattle herds in the 1880’s. He later worked with the AHA outfit near Grassy Butte and the Long X operation. In 1890, he began ranching 20 miles north of Watford City where he raised Hereford cattle and Percheron horses for 50 years. He was also a founder of the Cattleman’s Association and served as a Justice of the Peace.

Andrew Voigt started his ranch near Halliday in Dunn County in 1903. In 1912, Voigt, along with seven sons and two daughters, moved to the north side of the Missouri and began ranching near Elbowoods on the Fort Berthold Reservation. He raised Hereford cattle and Percheron horses and formed strong ties with the Indian community. Seven of his children continued to ranch, but all were forced out when the Garrison Dam was built. Voigt died in 1939 and was elected to the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in 1962.

In the Modern-era Ranching Division, Trustees selected Frank Kubik of Dickinson.

Frank Kubik began ranching near Dickinson in 1942. He built his ranch into a more than 3,000-acre operation, specializing in polled Hereford cattle. Over the years, he sold more than 4,000 performance-tested bulls and heifers to ranching operations in the United States, Canada, South America and South Africa. Kubik’s Herefords won numerous awards at local and national livestock shows and he also won several awards for his conservation practices. In 1980, Frank and Doris Kubik sold their ranch to the State of North Dakota and the Dickinson Experiment Station is now using it as a livestock research center.

In the Ranch Division, Trustees selected the Eaton Ranch in McHenry County for the Hall of Honorees.

The Eaton Ranch of Towner has been in the Eaton family since 1897 and the brand was registered in 1899. It is strictly a livestock operation and now covers more than 10,000 acres in the sand hills near Denbigh and meadows along the Mouse River. Second generation owner Jonathan Eaton served as president of the North Dakota Stockman’s Association and vice-president of the National Cattleman’s Association. “Jock” Eaton Jr., who hopes to pass it on to a fifth generation of the family, now owns the ranch.

In the Rodeo Livestock Division, famed saddle bronc horse Old Fitzgerald of Emmons County was picked.

Rodeo contractor John Steen of Linton owned Old Fitzgerald. Old Fitzgerald bucked at rodeos across the state, including the Champions Ride and Match of Champions and was only ridden six times in 10 years.

After Old Fitzgerald had thrown the likes of Casey Tibbs or Dean Armstong, Steen would remove the flank strap and have a child ride the big bucking horse out of the arena.

In the Great Westerner Division, Trustees selected Sakakawea of the Knife River Indian Village.

Sakakawea is one of America’s most famous people. The young woman, who lived among the Hidatsa, joined the Lewis and Clark Expedition with her husband Toussant Charbonneau, a trapper and trader. In addition to acting as interpreter, she pointed out key landmarks and enabled the expedition to get horses from the Shoshone Tribe. It’s believed she died in 1812 and is buried about 70 miles south of Bismarck. Last year, a new dollar coin was issued commemorating the brave young Indian woman.

In the Leaders of Rodeo and Ranching, Trustees selected Earl Northrop of Fargo and Dr. George Christensen of Minot.

Earl Northrop grew up near Merricourt, but moved to Fargo in 1936. Upon his return from World War II, he began working at West Fargo’s Union Stockyards. He soon started his own cow/calf and feeder cattle operation and participated in amateur rodeos. For 35 years, Northrop was the Director of the North Dakota High School Rodeo Association. Over the years, he worked with thousands of young men and women as they began their rodeo careers in high school. Earl Northrop died in 1998.

Dr. George M. Christensen, D.V.M., was born near Williston. He was a highly decorated officer, who served with North Dakota’s famed 164^th Infantry Regiment in WWII. He attended veterinary school following the war and served northwestern North Dakota farmers and ranchers for 34 years. He helped establish the first Y Men’s Indoor rodeo in Minot in 1955, was a charter member of the North Dakota Rodeo Association and a founding Board member of the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame. George Christensen died last year.

In the Arts and Entertainment Division, Trustees selected Frank Bennet Fiske of the Standing Rock Reservation.

Frank Fiske was born in Dakota Territory in 1883 and moved with his family to Fort Yates in 1889. He opened a photography studio at Fort Yates and became one of the country’s premier Native American photographers. Fiske was also an author and published his first book, “The Taming of the Sioux”, in 1917. The negatives of more than 3,600 historically important Fiske photos are in the archives of the North Dakota State Historical Society and used often by historians and researchers who marvel at their technical beauty and insight. Fiske died in 1952 at the age of 69.

In the Rodeo Producer Division, Trustees will selected John Stevenson of Carson.

J.C. Stevenson was one of the first rodeo livestock producers in the state. Born in 1905, he produced rodeos across the state, as well as high school rodeos, Native American rodeos and was one of the founders of the State Penitentiary Rodeo. He purchased Brahma bulls in Florida and raised bulls like Yellow Jacket and Widowmaker. The bloodlines from the J.C. Stevenson string are still noted in the PRCA today. He gave numerous young people the chance to practice and many of the state’s top rodeo performers got their start because of his efforts. John Stevenson died in 1980.

In the Special Achievement Division, Trustees select The Sanish one for the Hall of Honorees.

The Sanish Rodeo existed for just seven years on the Fort Berthold, but it is a legend. Started in 1947, it was second to none in the number of contestants and stock out of the chute for three days every July. By 1950, the crowd was estimated at 18,000 people at the rodeo grounds that was located under the present-day Four Bears Bridge over Lake Sakakawea. Because of the large amount of prize money offered, “The Best of the West” rode at Sanish and event winners claimed the state championships.

The Sanish Rodeo grounds became a casualty of the rising waters of the Garrison Dam, but is still considered one of the best by the men and women who rode the arena before it went under water.

Induction ceremonies into the NDCHF will be held August 4 and 5 in Medora and Sentinel Butte. Hall of Fame Executive Director Darrell Dorgan says portions of the induction ceremonies will be held Saturday, August 4 in Medora at the Tjaden Terrace with entertainment beginning at 12:00 p.m. Mountain Daylight Time. Additional activities are planned for the following day at The Champions Ride Rodeo at Home on the Range in Sentinel Butte. The Champions Ride draws the nation’s best bronc riders and begins at 2:00 p.m.

NDCHF President Phil Baird of Mandan notes, “Those not selected for induction into the Hall of Fame this year are eligible for nomination in future years.”

Work on the NDCHF began with a Dickinson organizational meeting five years ago. Nearly a thousand people from across the county have become charter and annual members. NDCHF has a nation-wide fund-raising drive underway to pay for the three million-dollar project, which will be built in Medora on the site of the current Museum of the Badlands. About a third of the funding needed has been committed. Contributions for the project may be sent to: The North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame, 1110 College Drive #212, Bismarck, North Dakota 58501.

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