Published: July 06, 2009 08:29 am      

New book tells story of Ada Rodeo

Ada — Dr. Ann Klepper of the Preserving Area Stories in Time Foundation has written a book about the origins and history of the Ada Rodeo.

The book details the origins of the Rodeo as a business venture of some local firefighters.

“In 1935 on a hot summer day, the firemen were sitting around talking about what to do for some activity in August,” Klepper said. “So they decided, ‘Let’s have a rodeo!’ In the course of three weeks, they set up this rodeo and it was a success. They didn’t lose any money but they didn’t make any money so they decided that they’d do it again.”

The rodeo eventually became a success.

“It grew and it prospered until finally, one year, it was actually bigger than Cheyenne both in purses and attendance,” Klepper said.

The book touches on the Round-up Club’s involvement in the rodeo as well as the Rotary club and other local organizations. It includes a foreword by five-time International Professional Rodeo Association World Champion Jet McCoy as well as a chapter dedicated to the history of rodeos in the McCoy family. It even includes Ferdinand, the model bull used to publicize the rodeo. Klepper wrote the book for the PAST society to help preserve the story of Ada’s rodeo history.

“What we try to do in PAST is try to preserve our area history. Not just the buildings around like the Kerr cabin and things like that, but also the stories. So we thought that this story needed to be told,” Klepper said.

Klepper will be signing copies of the book at J.D.’s Cafe in Ada on Tuesday, July 7, from 5-7 p.m. The book is for sale in various stores in Ada including J.D.’s and Gem Jewelers.

The Ada Rodeo: an Incredible Saga is the second book that the PAST Foundation has published. The first was a cookbook called Recipes of Our Heritage 2006 which also included some area stories.

“We were a group that just felt like there was not enough being done to help preserve historical things,” Klepper said. The PAST organization dedicated itself to preserving this history. To get a copy of this book or learn more about the organization, contact Klepper at (580) 332-6059.