[Cowboy on horseback waving U.S. flag. Southwestern U.S.]

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A lone rider holding a United States flag aloft gives this photograph its particular charge, pairing the working cowboy with national symbolism at a moment when both were powerful public images. The record dates it to around 1901, only a few years after the Spanish-American War and the popular celebration of volunteer cavalrymen, and Western riders were often cast as emblems of American independence and frontier character. The Southwest, with its open range and cattle culture, supplied the setting that made such images appealing to audiences far from the region. Photographs like this were often staged for effect, so the pose and the flag deserve as much attention as the horse and landscape.

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