�??Bronco Bustin�?? Showmen and their Spectacular Wild West Shows,�?� at SCCC

Join the Seward County Community College/Area Technical School Library for Lunch in the Library with Jane Rhoads and her presentation, “Bronco Bustin’ Showmen and their Spectacular Wild West Shows,” on Wednesday, April 22 at noon.

The event is free and open to all members of the community. Sandwiches and refreshments will be served.

Wild West shows at the turn of the 20th century delighted audiences around the country with skilled cowboys performing breathtaking feats. A surprising number of these shows originated in the Great Plains region.

The presentation will highlight famous western entertainers including Will Rogers, Pawnee Bill, Tom Mix, and Lucille Mulhall and shows such as Pawnee Bill’s Historical Wild West Indian Museum and Encampment, the 101 Ranch Real Wild West, and the Mulhall Congress of Rough Riders and Ropers. A reoccurring thread throughout all of these shows was Buffalo Bill Cody, the father of western entertainment.

Jane Rhoads is the author of Kansas Opera Houses, Actors, and Community Events 1855–1925, a 2009 Notable Kansas Book. She has traveled the state locating and photographing Kansas’ remaining opera houses and learning about their social and theatrical significance.

“Bronco Bustin’ Showmen and Their Spectacular Wild West Shows” is part of the Kansas Humanities Council’s Humanities Speakers Bureau, featuring presentations and discussions that examine our shared human experience—our innovations, culture, heritage, and conflicts.

For more information, contact the SCCC/ATS Library at 417-1160.