Dakota Cowboy Poetry Gathering

Dakota Cowboy Poetry Gathering

May, Memorial Day weekend

The Dakota Cowboy Poetry Gathering was founded by Bill Lowman, a cowboy poet who had attended a similar event in Nevada in 1985 ( see Cowboy Poetry Gathering) and decided that the Badlands of North Dakota should host its own cowboy poetry festival. Two years later the first "Real Cowboy Review" was held in Medora, with 40 poets and musicians participating. The crowds drawn to the event have continued to grow, and the performers often travel long distances to share their poetry, songs, and stories inspired by life on the ranch.
The Medora gathering prides itself on featuring only "the Real Ones"—those cowboys who "have spent a lifetime looking down the top of a cow." It tries to discourage "novelty cowboys, movie cowboys, or rodeo cowboys" who don't really live the life portrayed in their poems. This burgeoning interest in cowboy poetry is largely the result of research done by folklorists who wanted to draw attention to the cowboys' passion for rhyme and tale-spinning and to keep the tradition alive.

CONTACTS:
City of Medora
P.O. Box 418-A
Medora, ND 58645
701-623-4828
www.medorand.com
Library of Congress
101 Independence Ave. S.E.
Washington, DC 20540
202-707-5000; fax: 202-707-2076
www.loc.gov

Celebration days:
2011: May 28 - May 30
2012: May 26 - May 28
2013: May 25 - May 27
2014: May 24 - May 26
2015: May 23 - May 25