“Cowboy” Bill Wadsworth Memorialized in Film

APRIL 15, 2025 |

Photo – “Cowboy” Bill Wadsworth – Courtesy Owen Tanner

An Encampment filmmaker has created a documentary about the legendary Cowboy Bill Wadsworth.

Billy Ogden “Cowboy” Wadsworth passed away on May 30th, 2024, at the age of 96. Before his death, Encampment filmmaker Owen Tanner sat down with the local legend to document Cowboy’s remarkable life story.

Speaking to Bigfoot99, Tanner explained that his passion for filmmaking began during his freshman year at Green River High School. Over time, Tanner honed his craft and eventually selected Cowboy, a well-known Encampment resident, to be the subject of a documentary.

Cowboy was deeply involved in his community, serving as an interpretive guide at the Grand Encampment Museum and a host at the Carbon County Visitor Center. Tanner said Cowboy remained active in local events up until the end of his life.

Tanner recalled that over the years, he and Cowboy crossed paths several times during local events. One conversation about Cowboy’s impressive educational background compelled Tanner to learn more about the man behind the legend.

In January of 2024, Cowboy agreed to sit down with Tanner for a three-and-a-half-hour-long interview. Tanner shared his favorite of Cowboy’s stories was about the time he forgot the lyrics to the iconic country song ‘The Strawberry Roan’ while performing alongside Charley Pride.

Tanner explained that after interviewing Cowboy and his daughter, he had recorded roughly six hours of material. Over the course of 418 grueling days, the Encampment filmmaker edited the footage into an hour-and-a-half-long documentary.

Tanner’s film is titled “A Man Called Cowboy.” The filmmaker said he is still exploring ways to distribute his documentary. He met with representatives from the University of Wyoming. Ideally, Tanner said he would like to premiere his film in the Platte Valley.

Tanner explained Cowboy Bill Wadsworth was a captivating storyteller who always made people feel like the center of attention when they spoke.

Bigfoot99 will include a link to the trailer for A Man Named Cowboy with this story when it is posted to our website later today.

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