Photo Essay: A Place for Cowboys in Wisconsin
Observed on the fourth Saturday in July, National Day of the Cowboy honors the workers, traditions and values that shaped America — and makes a strong case that Wisconsin’s agricultural heritage belongs in that story.
There is something unmistakably American in the silhouette of a rider against an open sky.
The hat. The horse. The rope hanging from the saddle. The quiet figure crossing a landscape too broad to be tamed and too demanding to tolerate pretense.
The cowboy has become one of the enduring symbols of the United States — sometimes romanticized, sometimes misunderstood, but never forgotten.
National Day of the Cowboy is observed every year on the fourth Saturday in July. In 2026, it falls on this Saturday, July 25. The observance was established to honor the contributions cowboys and cowgirls have made to American history, culture and heritage and to preserve the traditions of ranching, horsemanship, rodeo, Western art, music, poetry and storytelling.
The first National Day of the Cowboy was celebrated in 2005 after the U.S. Senate approved a resolution recognizing the occasion. Since then, 15 states have permanently recognized the day: Wyoming, California, New Mexico, Arizona, Oklahoma, Oregon, Mississippi, Kansas, Virginia, Texas, Idaho, Indiana, Arkansas, North Dakota and Montana.
Wisconsin is not among them.
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