Billy Cogdell, born in 1932, grew up on his family’s ranch in Kent County. In 1954, his father purchased the original 27,000 acres of their now 160,000 acre Tule Ranch. Most of the acreage was originally a part of the JA Ranch.
The younger Cogdell graduated from Snyder High Scool in 1950 and attended Texas Wesleyan College in Fort Worth. He was stricken with polio in 1952. Nevertheless, from the seat of a pickup, he saw to it that his four children learned to ride. Confined to a wheelchair since 1991, Cogdell maintains enthusiasm for life, according to his daughter, Penny Cogdell Carpenter. “He represents true western heritage and the cowboy way of life,” she noted.
For more on Billy Cogdell and the heritage of the Tule Ranch and it’s cutting horse legacy, read this article by the American Quarter Horse Association.
