On May 3, 1896, African American cowboy Bill Pickett became widely recognized as the inventor of bulldogging—a daring rodeo technique where a rider leaps from a horse to wrestle a steer to the ground. Inspired by how trained bulldogs helped catch stray cattle, Pickett adapted the method using his own skill and grit. His version included a now-retired tactic of biting the steer’s upper lip while pulling it off balance—a dramatic move that amazed crowds across the Wild West and helped shape modern steer wrestling in rodeos. Pickett toured with the Miller Brothers’ 101 Ranch Wild West Show and became one of the first Black cowboys to gain national fame. His legacy lives on as a trailblazer in both rodeo sports and African American frontier history.
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