Biscayne
Ocean air
This is very interesting. Black Florida is very interesting historically. I had a thread on it. Not necessarily on the Black Cowboys, but just on Black Florida history. But either way, you're right. Florida was considered the frontier. Florida has had many traditions that are similar to that of the western style of cattle ranching. Not only that, but florida(like the sparsely populated west) was a considered a place where many outlaws, runaway slaves, etc could flee too. Until it was fully incorporated into the ante bellum economy and became a full fledged Southern state.Many of the asthetics associate with today's cowboys come from the Mexican vaquero tradition, but the actual lifestyle of black cowboys in texas is by and large derived from cattle cultures of the old south and florida.
Floridians, Americans first cowboys.
Riding Off Into the (Florida) Sunset: America's First Cowboys
Black cowboys of Florida.
NPR Choice page
Not enough attention is given to the Florida cowboy culture is which too is a descendant of spanish vaquero and anglophone cattle ranching traditions(which of course people of african descent played a part in both). Texas was not unique in this aspect. And we know when it comes to black cowboys that there is a direct link between FL & TX via the black seminoles. The article also states that there are other links between FL and TX black cowboys as well.
This book talks about the Carolina influence on Texas cowboys and cattle ranching tradition. Like I said I'm really interested in reading about the influence of old south and florida cattle ranching traditions on the Texas cowboy culture. Because, a lot of Mexicans try to act like it %100 comes from mexican vaqueros. I'm starting to think the mex vaqueros had a smaller influence than I previously thought actually.
The legendary TX cowboy bill picket himself had SC roots on both sides of his family.
https://www.thecoli.com/goto/post?id=32582390#post-32582390
(credit to @IllmaticDelta)
This book claims that it was Louisiana, not Mexican Texas that Americans first came into contact with the Spanish vaquero tradition.
Regardless if it was Florida or Louisiana, Americans weren't first exposed to the vaquero tradition when they came into Mexican Texas, nor were they absent of their own cattle driving tradition.
In fact we know that even in colonial British North America, African slaves were often chosen for their skills in cattle driving. Ben Solomon, a fulani slave, in America like many other fulanis brought to america was put to work to in cattle driving because of the skills he picked up in his culture's pastoral tradition in West Africa.
Ayuba Suleiman Diallo - Wikipedia
So, I don't see how Mexicans can make the claim that Texas cowboys are simply derived from the mexican vaquero tradition fully, let alone black texas cowboys, who if anything are rooted in culture(s) of Florida and the Old South primarily. In fact it was Mexicans who hired and trusted black seminole cowboys from Florida, known as Mascogos in Mexico, to guard their frontier against white anglo expansionist and hostile indians. Again, see the Callahan Expedition.
https://www.thecoli.com/posts/33873575/
Black cowboys tended make their cattle drives along north-south corridors as was the tradition of the old south cattle drives, not east-west as in the case of the Mexican vaquero.
Stuff like ten gallon hats and cowboy boots, which weren't even worn by black cowboys in the cowboy era, does come from the Mexican vaquero tradition.
You make interesting points about the black cowboys and how ranch herding in Africa was a main source of tradition and skill seen in the black slaves.
But the 10 gallon hats, lassos, rodeos, boots and pageantry associated with being a "Cowboy" was all part of the romanticization process of Southern European and Latin Traditions after the Civil War. This was all part of a campaign kinda "Westernize" Texas. But more and more you're exposing me to the true origins of some of these traditions.
There seems to be an urban/rural divide down south. Many native Southerners themselves seem to associate these traditions with Texas and associate Texas with the Western US. The romanticization of Spain, Mexico and Westward expansion might have to do with this. Think about shows like Zorro and all those old westerns. And then look at states like Florida and look at the Spanish Revival architecture that home developers went crazy with in the 30's, 40's and 50's. There were so many "themed" neighborhoods with names like Villa Viscaya and stuff like that. Concrete siding, Terra cotta roofing. That's all part of the romanticization of Iberian traditions. You see it alot in Florida, South/West Texas, The Southwestern US, and CA. To be fair, Mexican culture has definitely be the biggest influence on the architecture and culture of those regions. But also developers and those selling land used that romanticization to attract buyers and transplants.
Either way, Spanish revival and Mediterranean architecture is my fave.