Icon, Brand, Myth:
The Calgary Stampede

About the Book

An investigation of the meanings and iconography of the Stampede: an invented tradition that takes over the city of Calgary for 10 days every July. Since 1923, archetypal “Cowboys and Indians” are seen again at the chuckwagon races, on the midway, and throughout Calgary. Each essay in this collection examines a facet of the experience—from the images on advertising posters to the ritual of the annual parade. This study of the Calgary Stampede as a social phenomenon reveals the history and sociology of the city of Calgary and the social construc-tion of identity for western Canada as a whole.

About the Author

Max Foran is a Professor in the Faculty of Communication and History at the University of Calgary. He has written extensively on various western Canadian urban, rural, and cultural topics, most recently on ranching, urban growth, and sustainability.

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Copyright: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License. It may be reproduced for non-commercial purposes, provided that the original author is credited.

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DownloadChapter 1
The Stampede in Historical Context
Max Foran

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Making Tradition: The Calgary Stampede, 1912–1939
Donald G. Wetherell

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The Indians and the Stampede
Hugh A. Dempsey

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Calgary’s Parading Culture Before 1912
Lorry W. Felske

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Midway to Respectability: Carnivals at the Calgary Stampede
Fiona Angus

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More Than Partners: The Calgary Stampede and the City of Calgary
Max Foran

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Riding Broncs and Taming Contradictions: Reflections on the Uses of the Cowboy in the Calgary Stampede
Tamara Palmer Seiler

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A Spurring Soul: A Tenderfoot’s Guide to the Calgary Stampede Rodeo
Glen Mikkelsen

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The Half a Mile of Heaven’s Gate
Aritha van Herk

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“Cowtown It Ain’t”: The Stampede and Calgary’s Public Monuments
Frits Pannekoek

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“A Wonderful Picture”: Western Art and the Calgary Stampede
Brian Rusted

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The Social Construction of the Canadian Cowboy: Calgary Exhibitions and Stampede Posters, 1952–1972
Robert M. Seiler and Tamara P. Seiler

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Renewing the Calgary Stampede for the 21st Century: A Conversation with Vern Kimball, Stampede Chief Executive Officer

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An Interview with Max Foran

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