Ralph Rector, Mr. Cow Chip

In 1996, I traveled to Oakland, California to visit my Great Aunt M. Virginia Rector Cunningham (1919-2004). During that visit she told lots of stories. Many of her tales centered around her uncle (my 2x great uncle) Ralph Rector (1898-1985), son of Charlottie Senate and Milton Rector.

Ralph Otis Rector

In a 1984 oral history interview,¹Interview. Ralph Rector with Bereneice Jackson, November 12, 1984. Original cassette tape held by the Oklahoma State Historical Society. Transcribed by Karrie Blees, February 20, 2017. Ralph detailed his early family life:

“I was born October the third, 1898, near a little community called Lindsey ‘Missoura’, out in the woods, where most of the little places were just like we were here in this county, with a little store about every 3 or 4 miles. That’s the way it was back there out in the woods. I don’t know how long we lived there.

My dad [Milton Rector] was mechanic in a wagon and buggy factory. And he had contracted a cough that he couldn’t lose. His family had a poor track record in health²Milton’s father, Ezra Rector died at age 51. and the doctor told my mother that if she didn’t get him out of that sanding dust in that manufacturing place, she would be a young widow.

Her father [John Senate] was a blacksmith. So he [Milton] left that place and went into business with his daddy-in-law and learned the blacksmith trade.

So in 1901 when we came to Oklahoma, a blacksmith was about as important as the president of the First National Bank because all of the machinery needed a man skilled in that sort of repair, especially being wagons and buggies. My dad had a profession that just fit exactly which helped a lot in that time.”

Virginia’s Recollections:

Uncle Ralph had 45 minutes of exposure on national television (Johnny Carson and Merv Griffin). One time he was on with Phyllis Diller.

“I don’t like that broad, she thinks she’s so wonderful.”

“What do you mean Uncle Ralph?”

“She was going to throw with her gloves on.”

You see, he always brought along some chips to throw.

He says, “You can spit on your fingers, but you can’t throw with gloves on.”

The year we were there, they [people of Beaver, OK] gave a lunch to everybody that came: a helping of beans and ham hocks cooked over cow chips, a couple of slices of bread, a dill pickle, some onion, and a soft drink in a dixie cup. For Nothing! Now pretty soon there’s an airplane flying around: the Governor of Oklahoma! Lands in the field, and here is all of the “top brass” of the Army and Navy from Oklahoma City – in full dress fancy things. They were all up there throwing cow chips.

The year we were there a mule team: 8-10 covered wagons from Odessa Texas came up for the festival.

They [Ralph and his wife] were flown to Los Angeles three different times, wined and dined, red carpet treatment, and driven in limousines all for a pile of cow manure!

Who was this man? How can I learn more?

Cow Chip Throw

The cow chip throwing tournament celebrates the early traditions of Oklahoma’s pioneers in Oklahoma. Severe winters in the open plains found these early settlers in desperate need of fuel. With miles of grass and few trees; little fuel was available.

Oklahoma buffalo hunters knew that dried buffalo chips could used as fuel. However, by the time the settlers occupied the Panhandle, most of the buffalo were gone. So, the settlers relied on cow chips. When dry, chips burn with no odor, a clear bright flame, intense heat, and no soot.

Ralph Rector is credited with making Beaver, Oklahoma’s Cimarron Territory Celebration and the Cow Chip Throw successful.³“Beaver Ready for Panhandle Festivities.” The Oklahoman. April 13, 1986.

Cow chip throwing is exactly what is sounds like: a distance competition utilizing a naturally-occurring material.

Ralph Rector, Beaver OK statue, and Australian visitor⁴Ralph Rector photo. Original belonged to Virginia Rector Cunningham. Photographic reprint made by Karrie Blees, June 1996.

Tribute to Mr. Cow Chip

A month after Ralph passed away, the Cimarron Territory Celebration brochure was to dedicated to him.⁵Cimarron Territory Celebration (brochure), April 1985. Original owned by Virginia Rector Cunningham. Photographic copy of the front cover and transcription of content made by Karrie Blees, June 1996. The tribute reads:

To Mr. Cow Chip … Ralph O. Rector who gave so much of his time and effort toward the success of the World Championship Cow Chip Throwing Contest. In a truly dedicated manner, Ralph promoted no-man’s land, Red Carpet Country, the Cimarron Territory Celebration and the Cow Chip Throw, establishing Beaver as the home of the World Championship Contest. He worked diligently for many hours behind the scenes before, during, and after the week of the celebration, answering 100s of telephone calls from radio stations seeking live and taped interviews concerning details of the events held annually around April 22, which is Oklahoma Day. UPI and AP carry the story of the Cow Chip Throw, enabling it to reach all corners of the earth which brings a flood of letters from interested persons who comment on the story with some sending clippings from their local newspapers to the Chamber of Commerce Office.

In 1978, Ralph appeared as a guest on the Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson on national television. He related the Cow Chip story with as much ease as if he had been in his own living room or office in Beaver. The audience, as well as Johnny Carson enjoyed hearing about cow chips and seeing the real thing as Ralph presented the TV host with a few choice gifts from his Great Plains area in the panhandle of Oklahoma. Again in 1978, he was a guest on the Mike Douglas Show along with a few famous television personalities, thus gaining more national recognition for Beaver and the World’s Championship Cow Chip Throwing Contest.

In 1969, after retiring twice, once from the lumber business and once from the OK Tax Commission, he became Secretary/Manager of the Beaver Chamber of Commerce, retiring in 1981 from that position because of failing eyesight and ill health. He was enthusiastic about the town of Beaver as well as the Cow Chip Throwing Contest and the Cimarron Territory Celebration.

It never took much to get Ralph started on a subject relating to incidents of the past. Strangers, as well as friends, enjoyed hearing Ralph’s vivid stories of the early days in no-man’s land.

To sum it all up, Mr. Cow Chip, as he is affectionately known in the Panhandle area and all of the rest of Oklahoma, will always be remembered for his enthusiasm for life itself.

What’s Next?

Next week: Ralph’s time on The Tonight Show. Is the clip available?

SOURCES

• 1
  Interview. Ralph Rector with Bereneice Jackson, November 12, 1984. Original cassette tape held by the Oklahoma State Historical Society. Transcribed by Karrie Blees, February 20, 2017.
• 2
  Milton’s father, Ezra Rector died at age 51.
• 3
  “Beaver Ready for Panhandle Festivities.” The Oklahoman. April 13, 1986.
• 4
  Ralph Rector photo. Original belonged to Virginia Rector Cunningham. Photographic reprint made by Karrie Blees, June 1996.
• 5
  Cimarron Territory Celebration (brochure), April 1985. Original owned by Virginia Rector Cunningham. Photographic copy of the front cover and transcription of content made by Karrie Blees, June 1996.