The Texas Prison Rodeo was a rodeo and an annual celebration event for inmates in the Texas Prison System, held in a stadium in Huntsville, Texas. [1] The stadium was located at the Huntsville Unit. [2] The events included bareback basketball, bronco riding, bull riding, calf roping, and wild cow milking. [1]

Over its 55-year run, the prison rodeo brought in hundreds of thousands of dollars, attracted spectators from all over the world, garnered press in Life and TIME magazines, and featured performances from George Strait, Willie Nelson, and Dolly Parton.

Jan 24, 2020 · The Texas Prison Rodeo, instituted in 1931 by general prison manager Marshall Lee Simmons as recreation for inmates and entertainment for staff and their families, soon earned a reputation as the wildest of cowboy shows, attracting huge crowds and favorable publicity to the Huntsville unit. After securing the blessing of local clergy to hold ...

Soon, the Texas Prison Rodeo was drawing the largest crowds for a sporting event in the state of Texas. With a lifespan of more than 50 years, the Prison Rodeo became a Texas tradition, held every Sunday in October.

Known for daring feats and inmate rehabilitation, the Texas Prison Rodeo's 1931 origins to 1986 closure reveal a captivating cultural phenomenon.

Oct 10, 2016 · In a time before reality TV competitions like American Ninja Warrior, more than 30,000 Texans would show up on Sundays in October to watch prisoners put on a death-defying rodeo show that would make professional cowboys think twice.

Sep 27, 2023 · Over the long history of the Texas prison rodeos, at least two inmates died and many dozens were injured when they tangled with wild bulls. Only two prisoners even tried to escape during the...

Aug 31, 2017 · The Texas Prison Rodeo (earlier known as the Huntsville Prison Rodeo) was an event that Texans looked forward to for many years. It began in 1931 when Marshall Lee Simmons, then serving as general manager of the Texas Prison System, conceived of it as a means for the prisoners to have recreation and as entertainment…