Nat Love — Deadwood Dick — Legendary Black Cowboy Career

Nat Love, born enslaved in Tennessee, won roping and shooting competitions at the 1876 Deadwood, South Dakota rodeo, earning the nickname 'Deadwood Dick.' His autobiography (1907) documented the role of Black cowboys — estimated at 25 percent of all trail hands — in the cattle industry. Love embodied Black participation in the mythologized American West.