Return of the Elk

Elk Natural History Facts

Elk Beyond The Pine Ridge

Managing the Herds

Counting Elk

Roping Elk

Roping Elk
Photos and text by Eric Fowler
Published October 2010

When I began gathering information for my story on elk in Nebraska, I contacted James E. Potter, Senior Research Historian with the Nebraska State Historical Society, who shared several interesting accounts of elk from soldiers and settlers that he had run across in his work. Most were utilitarian in nature, as one would expect - settlers needed to eat and looked at game, be it buffalo, elk or deer, simply as food. But all painted a much different picture of Nebraska in the 1800s than the one we know today.

“… I must state that there are great quantities of game there. There being an abundance of Elk, Antelope, Turkeys & c., and at certain seasons of the year, Buffalo. Of fur bearing animals the principal is the Bear,” William Polock of Brownville wrote to his hometown newspaper, detailing his visits to the Republican River valley in 1865 while part of the First Nebraska Veteran Volunteer Cavalry during the Civil War.

That same year, the following report ran in the Omaha Bee newspaper: “Omaha Agency, Dec. 27, ‘65

“Mr. Editor:-- As the Omaha and Nebraska City ‘Sportsmen’s Clubs’ have had their ‘annual hunts’ and the results published, allow me to furnish you with the result of the Omaha Indians’ ‘Sportsmen’s Club’ annual hunt, which took place lately. It is composed of eleven ‘crack shots.’ They hunted four days and brought in:  Elk, 95; Deer, 1; Otter, 4; Beaver, 12; Mink, 2; Badger, 3; Wild Cat, 1; Skunks,2. “As this was intended for an Elk hunt especially, but little attention was paid to other and smaller game. - “Yours, &c. “Wilkes”

But one account shared by Potter stood out from the rest for its uniqueness, likely the same reason it had appeared in Nebraska Timeline, a column distributed to newspapers by the Nebraska State Historical Society: “Roping Elk”

Cowboys occasionally roped more than cattle or horses, as James E. Farley recalled in Solomon D. Butcher’s Pioneer History of Custer County, Nebraska (1901). “Towards the end of my cowboy career,” Farley said, “I worked for the Bar-T ranch, of which David Rankin was principal owner. This ranch was located on the Middle Loup. “Large herds of elk roamed over this country at that time. While on the roundup in 1881 we sighted a large bunch which had winded us. The boys [set] off with their ropes after them. C. W. Stern, John Carney, Bert Wilder, Charley Peterson, a green hand at the cattle business, and six or eight others were in the chase and there was enacted one of the most thrilling incidents ever witnessed on the plains of Nebraska. “Peterson singled out the biggest buck in the bunch, and as soon as Charley began to press him hard, he left the bunch and ran in another direction, Peterson close at his heels.

I knew that Charley would never let up until he had secured the buck, and I knew full as well that he would have trouble when he threw his rope over the powerful beast, as he never carried a gun. I followed him as fast as my horse could carry me. I lost sight of him for awhile in the chop hills, but soon discovered him again as I rode up on a little hill. He had the elk at the end of his rope about eighty rods from me. “The first move I saw was the elk making a run on the rope, and when he came to the end of it he fell heavily to the ground. He then jumped up and charged Peterson’s horse. As he came on, head down, at the rate of about fifty miles an hour, Charlie spurred his horse to one side and let the elk pass, and gave him another tumble as the rope tightened up. I waited to see no more but galloped as fast as my horse could carry me to his assistance, as I knew that it was only a question of time when the infuriated brute would catch the fearless boy in one of his charges.

“As I rode up the elk was making his third charge, but Peterson evaded him again and gave him another tumble at the end of the rope. When about three hundred feet from Peterson the elk had again regained his feet, lowered his head for another charge, his eyes flashing fire, and with terrific bounds made for the plucky boy. It seemed to me that it would be impossible for him to get out of the way of those terrible horns. But again he let the elk pass by without touching him and again he brought the brute to the ground at the end of the rope, pulling him square over on his back.

“Quick as lightning Peterson reined his horse backward, tightened the rope, jumped out of the saddle, whipped out a big jack knife, and slashed it across the throat of the prostrate beast. I shouted to him with all my might to desist, as I expected to see him killed every second, but he heard nothing and saw nothing but that elk, and before I came up Peterson was back in his saddle. “What the devil did you do that for?’ I shouted as soon as I reached him. ‘I did na want loosse ma rope - da boys da laugh at ma.’”

To learn more about the programs and services of the Nebraska State Historical Society, call 1-800-833-6747, or visit their website at www.nebraskahistory.org.