Alice Greenough Orr
Encyclopedia
Alice Greenough Orr a rancher’s daughter in Montana
, became an internationally known rodeo
performer and organizer who was inducted into the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City
, Oklahoma, the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame
in Fort Worth
, Texas
, and in 2010 the Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame in Wolf Point
, Montana. She is considered "hands down the first rodeo queen."
Orr broke horses while she was growing up on a ranch near Red Lodge
, the seat of Carbon County
southwest of Billings
, Montana. At the age of fourteen, she left school to deliver mail by horseback over a 35-mile route. She intended to become a forest ranger until the return of servicemen from World War I
made such employment unrealistic for women at that time.
Ultimately, Orr performed in rodeos in forty-six states and in Madison Square Garden
in New York City as well as Australia and Europe, where she was once invited for tea with the Queen of England. Orr was four-times the world saddle bronc champion. She and her sister, Marge Greenough Henson (1908-2004), excelled at trick riding and bull riding. Alice and Marge, with their brothers, Bill and Thurkel, known as "Turk", were termed the Riding Greenoughs. Turk Greenough was a bronc rider and occasional film actor who died in June 1995 at the age of eighty-nine, two months before the passing of his sister Alice. Orr also did occasional stunt
work in films.
From her first marriage to Ray Cahill, Alice Orr had two children. Her interest in bronc riding began in 1929, when she and her sister answered an advertisement from Jack King’s Wild West Show. Because competitors were sometimes cheated by tour operators, Orr joined a group which in 1936 organized the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association
. In the 1940s and 1950s, Orr and her long-term friend Joe Orr (1905–1978), also of Montana, operated their own Greenough-Orr Rodeo, which toured the American West. The couple married in 1958. The Orrs offered the first women barrel racing events. Orr also did difficult exhibitions of saddle bronc riding, a specialty no longer on the women’s rodeo circuit
Orr retired from rodeos in 1954 at the age of fifty-two, but she continued to accept occasional motion picture assignments until she was eighty. She did stunt work for the NBC
western
television series, Little House on the Prairie
, starring Michael Landon
. Her last public appearance was in a parade in 1992 in her native Red Lodge. She died the next year at the age of ninety-three at her home in Tucson
, Arizona. In addition to her sister Marge, also of Tucson, who lived another nine years, Orr was survived by a son, Jay Cahill of Grandview
, Missouri, eleven grandchildren, twelve great-grandchildren, and two great-great-grandchildren.
Orr was among the first three inductees, along with Jackie Worthington and Sissy Thurman, into the National Cowgirls Hall of Fame, when the museum
, founded by Margaret Formby
, was located in the public library at Hereford
in Deaf Smith County, Texas. It was moved to a house in Hereford and then in 1994 to Fort Worth. A new $21 million headquarters building opened in 2002. Others inducted into the Cowgirl Hall of Fame include subjects as diverse as former Supreme Court of the United States
Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, painter Georgia O’Keeffe, sculptor Glenna Goodacre
, markswoman Annie Oakley
, author Laura Ingalls Wilder
, and Margaret Formby herself.
Orr was also named among the "100 Most Influential Montanans of the Century."
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
, became an internationally known rodeo
Rodeo
Rodeo is a competitive sport which arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain, Mexico, and later the United States, Canada, South America and Australia. It was based on the skills required of the working vaqueros and later, cowboys, in what today is the western United States,...
performer and organizer who was inducted into the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Oklahoma City is the capital and the largest city in the state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, the city ranks 31st among United States cities in population. The city's population, from the 2010 census, was 579,999, with a metro-area population of 1,252,987 . In 2010, the Oklahoma...
, Oklahoma, the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame
National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame
The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame is a museum and association which honors women of the American West who have displayed courage or spirit and who have distinguished themselves while exemplifying the pioneer spirit...
in Fort Worth
Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, and in 2010 the Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame in Wolf Point
Wolf Point, Montana
Wolf Point is a city in and the county seat of Roosevelt County, Montana, United States. The population was 2,621 at the 2010 census. It is the largest community on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation. Wolf Point is the home of the annual Wild Horse Stampede, held every year during the second weekend...
, Montana. She is considered "hands down the first rodeo queen."
Orr broke horses while she was growing up on a ranch near Red Lodge
Red Lodge, Montana
Red Lodge is a city in and the county seat of Carbon County, Montana, United States. It is part of the Billings, Montana Metropolitan Statistical Area...
, the seat of Carbon County
Carbon County, Montana
-National protected areas:* Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area * Custer National Forest * Gallatin National Forest -Economy:During the early history of Carbon County, coal mining was the predominant industry...
southwest of Billings
Billings, Montana
Billings is the largest city in the U.S. state of Montana, and is the principal city of the Billings Metropolitan Area, the largest metropolitan area in over...
, Montana. At the age of fourteen, she left school to deliver mail by horseback over a 35-mile route. She intended to become a forest ranger until the return of servicemen from World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
made such employment unrealistic for women at that time.
'
We came from a great era. We called ourselves the 'Wild Bunch.' -- Alice Greenough Orr
Ultimately, Orr performed in rodeos in forty-six states and in Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
in New York City as well as Australia and Europe, where she was once invited for tea with the Queen of England. Orr was four-times the world saddle bronc champion. She and her sister, Marge Greenough Henson (1908-2004), excelled at trick riding and bull riding. Alice and Marge, with their brothers, Bill and Thurkel, known as "Turk", were termed the Riding Greenoughs. Turk Greenough was a bronc rider and occasional film actor who died in June 1995 at the age of eighty-nine, two months before the passing of his sister Alice. Orr also did occasional stunt
Stunt
A stunt is an unusual and difficult physical feat, or any act requiring a special skill, performed for artistic purposes in TV, theatre, or cinema...
work in films.
From her first marriage to Ray Cahill, Alice Orr had two children. Her interest in bronc riding began in 1929, when she and her sister answered an advertisement from Jack King’s Wild West Show. Because competitors were sometimes cheated by tour operators, Orr joined a group which in 1936 organized the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association
Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association
The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association is an organization whose members compete in rodeos throughout North America, primarily in the United States. The PRCA sanctions rodeo venues and events through the PRCA Circuit System. Its championship event is the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo...
. In the 1940s and 1950s, Orr and her long-term friend Joe Orr (1905–1978), also of Montana, operated their own Greenough-Orr Rodeo, which toured the American West. The couple married in 1958. The Orrs offered the first women barrel racing events. Orr also did difficult exhibitions of saddle bronc riding, a specialty no longer on the women’s rodeo circuit
Orr retired from rodeos in 1954 at the age of fifty-two, but she continued to accept occasional motion picture assignments until she was eighty. She did stunt work for the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
television series, Little House on the Prairie
Little House on the Prairie
Little House is a series of children's books by Laura Ingalls Wilder that was published originally between 1932 and 1943, with four additional books published posthumously, in 1962, 1971, 1974 and 2006.-History:...
, starring Michael Landon
Michael Landon
Michael Landon was an American actor, writer, director, and producer. He is widely known for his roles as Little Joe Cartwright in Bonanza , Charles Ingalls in Little House on the Prairie , and Jonathan Smith in Highway to Heaven...
. Her last public appearance was in a parade in 1992 in her native Red Lodge. She died the next year at the age of ninety-three at her home in Tucson
Tucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
, Arizona. In addition to her sister Marge, also of Tucson, who lived another nine years, Orr was survived by a son, Jay Cahill of Grandview
Grandview, Missouri
Grandview is a city in Jackson County, Missouri, United States. The population was 24,475 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Grandview is located at , along U.S...
, Missouri, eleven grandchildren, twelve great-grandchildren, and two great-great-grandchildren.
Orr was among the first three inductees, along with Jackie Worthington and Sissy Thurman, into the National Cowgirls Hall of Fame, when the museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
, founded by Margaret Formby
Margaret Formby
Margaret Clark Formby was the daughter of southwest Texas ranchers who founded the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame in the basement of the public library in Hereford in Deaf Smith County before she relocated the collection to Fort Worth.Formby was born to Fred and Mabel Clark in Van Horn...
, was located in the public library at Hereford
Hereford, Texas
Hereford is a city in Deaf Smith County, Texas, United States. The population was 14,597 at the 2000 census. It is the only incorporated Hereford in the country. It is the county seat of Deaf Smith County....
in Deaf Smith County, Texas. It was moved to a house in Hereford and then in 1994 to Fort Worth. A new $21 million headquarters building opened in 2002. Others inducted into the Cowgirl Hall of Fame include subjects as diverse as former Supreme Court of the United States
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, painter Georgia O’Keeffe, sculptor Glenna Goodacre
Glenna Goodacre
Glenna Maxey Goodacre is a sculptor well known for having designed the obverse of the Sacagawea dollar that entered circulation in the United States in 2000...
, markswoman Annie Oakley
Annie Oakley
Annie Oakley , born Phoebe Ann Mosey, was an American sharpshooter and exhibition shooter. Oakley's amazing talent and timely rise to fame led to a starring role in Buffalo Bill's Wild West show, which propelled her to become the first American female superstar.Oakley's most famous trick is perhaps...
, author Laura Ingalls Wilder
Laura Ingalls Wilder
Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder was an American author who wrote the Little House series of books based on her childhood in a pioneer family...
, and Margaret Formby herself.
Orr was also named among the "100 Most Influential Montanans of the Century."