# Broncho Bill — Songs of the Cattle Trail and Cow Camp character guide

> Broncho Bill in Songs of the Cattle Trail and Cow Camp by John A. Lomax.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Bill

**First appearance:** 0010-broncho-versus-bicycle

## Snapshot

A cowboy of many poems, a steady presence in the bunkhouse and on the trail, known by his first name and his bronc-breaking ways.

## Who they are

Bill is the every-cowboy of the collection, appearing in multiple poems as a familiar figure of the range. His tension is the ordinary one of a man caught between the freedom of the saddle and the pull of town, between work and whiskey. He matters because his recurring presence gives the collection its sense of community, a reminder that the cowboy life is lived not alone but among a cast of familiar, flawed, and enduring men.

## Relationships

### [Unknown Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/songs_of_the_cattle_trail_and_cow_camp_se/characters/unknown_narrator)

_friendship_

Broncho Bill is a rough-and-tumble cowboy companion, often involved in humorous or daring exploits.

### [Belle McClure](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/songs_of_the_cattle_trail_and_cow_camp_se/characters/belle_mcclure)

_romantic_

Belle McClure and Broncho Bill share a flirtatious or romantic dynamic in the camp stories.

### [James Barton Adams](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/songs_of_the_cattle_trail_and_cow_camp_se/characters/james_barton_adams)

_friendship_

Broncho Bill and James Barton Adams are cowboy companions, often appearing together in verse.

### [Unknown Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/songs_of_the_cattle_trail_and_cow_camp_se/characters/unknown_narrator)

_friendship_

Broncho Bill is a rough-and-tumble cowboy companion, often involved in humorous or daring exploits.

## In the story

### [Songs of the Cattle Trail and Cow Camp](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/songs_of_the_cattle_trail_and_cow_camp_se/chapters/songs-of-the-cattle-trail-and-cow-camp)

Broncho Bill is a character in a poem about a cowboy arriving at Silver Valley and encountering trouble.

### [Part I: Cowboy Yarns](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/songs_of_the_cattle_trail_and_cow_camp_se/chapters/part-i-cowboy-yarns)

Arrives at Silver Valley ready to dance and fight, shaved and slick, with a case of dark blue steel on his hip.

### [The Dance at Silver Valley](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/songs_of_the_cattle_trail_and_cow_camp_se/chapters/the-dance-at-silver-valley)

The broncho buster who comes to town to dance, courts Belle McClure, and is shot dead by Jim Kershaw.

### [At a Cowboy Dance](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/songs_of_the_cattle_trail_and_cow_camp_se/chapters/at-a-cowboy-dance)

Told to put out his cigarette and participate in the dance.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/songs_of_the_cattle_trail_and_cow_camp_se/characters/broncho_bill
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/songs_of_the_cattle_trail_and_cow_camp_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/songs_of_the_cattle_trail_and_cow_camp_se/characters