Archive for June 12, 2008
Jack Thorp Centennial Celebration
About 100 years ago, Jack Thorp published one of the first, and possibly the first, collections of cowboy songs. The book, which contained 23 songs, was published at the Estancia News and Print Shop, right here in New Mexico’s real central valley. A second edition, published in 1921, was expanded to include 101 songs, a number of which Thorp wrote himself.
Born in New York City in 1867, Thorp was the son of a lawyer and real estate investor. He attended Harvard for three years, and moved to New Mexico at about the age of 19 (rangewriter.org). Thorp and other early collectors of cowboy songs are recognized for preserving a tradition of music and poetry that might well have been lost.
The Jack Thorp Centennial celebration will be held on Saturday, June 21 from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Torrance County Fairgrounds in Estancia. Events include a silent auction, cowboy poetry, preview of the P.B.S. film “On The Trail of Jack Thorp,” an art show, a barbecue lunch ($8.00) and an evening dance ($5.00). For more information, contact Bobby Neeley at (505) 384-5232 or Babbi Baker at (505) 384-1858.