 Ernie Morris was born December 13,
1927 in the rural community of Fellows in Kern County
California. He is a fifth generation California cattlemen
on both his mother's and father's side of the family tree, and he
is a great grandson of the late Samuel S. Jobe, a Pony Express rider
and stage coach driver.
Ernie spent much of
his youth on the family ranch in Kings County California.
After the tragic accidental death of his father when Ernie was 12
years old, his family moved to the Paso Robles area of San Luis
Obispo County California to be closer to other family members.
During his high school years Ernie began working on various ranches
of the central coast area of California where he worked with older men who
followed the California vaquero horsemanship style. There he
found the beginning of a fascination that has lasted throughout his
life.
Ernie especially credits his grandfather,
Jesse Wilkinson, with teaching him
many of the vaquero ways and techniques for making quality rawhide
equipment. Jesse was well-known in the central coast
area of California as an excellent vaquero and a master rawhide
worker. More can be learned about Jesse Wilkinson on another
page of this website.
On March 10, 1954
Ernie and his wife Blanche were married. They eventually
settled to their ranch near Templeton in San Luis Obispo County
where they raised Blanche’s two children, Linda and Ralph.
They have four grandchildren and one great grandchild. One can
quickly calculate that Ernie and Blanche have a relationship that
has endured several decades.
Ernie's art talents
began to show at an early age, with special interests in the
California vaquero. Vaquero art was a hobby until 1964 when he took
up art as a full-time occupation. He and Blanche have worked
side-by-side throughout his career, exhibiting at numerous shows and
special events throughout California and in many areas of the western United States.
In 1967 Ernie began placing a small hackamore beside his name on his
paintings as a symbol to connect his art and his rawhide work.
 Ernie prides himself in creating authentic vaquero
remembrances in all aspects - people, horses, equipment, cattle,
terrain, livestock situations, etc. He has created vaquero
art with pen & ink, pencil, charcoal, watercolor, oils, acrylic, bronze
sculpting, wood carving, rawhide braiding, and making horse hair mecates.
His paintings and drawings provide a vivid and colorful replay of
his personal experiences while working on various ranches in his
younger days, and the many stories told to him by "old-timer
cowboys" he has known. His
art, rawhide work,
and books have been featured in galleries, museums, and private
collections throughout the United States and many other parts of the
world.
Ernie has authored and
illustrated four popular books about vaquero horsemanship and
livestock handling - El Vaquero (published in 1989),
el
Buckaroo (published in 1995), Riata Men (published in 1999), and
California Cowboy Inventions (published in 2003). He has
also illustrated several
other books and publications, and he has been published in numerous
newspaper and magazine articles regarding horse training methods,
rawhide braiding, western art, etc.
Among Ernie’s numerous
honors include being included in the 1981-1982 "Who's Who in
California," and in 1985 he was included in "Personalities of
America" and "Men of Achievement in the World".
In 2002 he was
selected as the "Honorary Vaquero" for the Old Spanish Days La Fiesta
celebration in Santa Barbara. The picture Ernie painted for the Rodeo and Horse Show poster
is shown below. This is the first time in the history of the
La Fiesta celebrations that the Honorary Vaquero has created the
poster picture.
(click
on picture to view an enlarged image)
In 2006 Ernie received the "Vaquero Craftsman" award from the
Santa Ynez Valley Historical Society associated with their annual
Vaquero Show. The picture Ernie painted for the Vaquero Show
poster is shown below.
(click
on picture to view an enlarged image)
Although Ernie's art encompasses most of his time, he is active
in the cattle business, training his own ranch horses, braiding
rawhide gear, and occasionally making horse hair mecates.
Ernie and Blanche reside on their ranch near Templeton, California
where they enjoy western art, horses, cattle, and friendly
conversation.
~ The following
postscript was added by Ralph Pavey ~
I have had a special
closeness to Ernie since I was a small child. He and my
mother, Blanche, were married the year following the untimely death
of my father. Since that time I have known Ernie as "Dad".
We have spent countless hours together training horses, branding
calves & doctoring cattle, holding our own private horsemanship
competitions, agonizing over livestock losses, discussing the
meaning of life, both cussing and praising the actions of
government, and all of the other things that are a typical part of
ranch life. Throughout this time we have had a special bond
that has been as good as any father and son relationship could ever
be. He has stood firm in his principles of hard work and
honesty, and he has maintained an unending sense of humor. He
is truly a remarkable man to me, and I am proud that he is my best
friend and my Dad.
~ The following
poem was added with permission from the author ~
One Of The Best
by John Greber, Jr.
I was lucky enough in my life
to meet and visit with one of the best.
A man that stands out through his many achievements,
well above the rest.
He learned from older men who knew
the art of vaquero trade.
Through their teachings,
another great vaquero was made.
He learned how to start a colt
and take him from Jaquima to Freno,
a velvet mounted wonder.
While many other men would sit around and ponder.
Could this be done?
Could a man with this ability be real?
To know all the aspects of horses
timing and feel.
The slightest whisper of the reins could make the horse slide,
stop or spin with the greatest of ease.
The type of pony a puncher
would be proud to have between his knees.
With a ninety foot riata in hand,
he demonstrated his skills at the vaquero show.
He would build a big California loop,
then with a couple of smooth swings,
he'd make a perfect throw.
Though his talents do not stop there,
they are only just the start.
He is a master of many,
types of art.
From several types of rawhide work
and bronzes to pen and ink, and carvings in wood.
With all of his finished products
being incredibly good.
Though through all of his great achievements
that you could hang on the wall.
Ernie Morris is one of the nicest and generous men that I've ever
met,
who took his time to help me with a question,
and to me that's the greatest achievement of all.
~ The following
poem was added with permission from the author ~
Ernest Morris, Vaquero
by Tony Johnston
His granddaddy once lived the life
And a string of men before him
From Mexico and far-off Spain.
They passed it on, like breathing.
How to sit a caballo ramrod straight.
How to make it move, like water.
How to work the reins with a feather-touch
While you stalked a mean cow-critter.
His hands are hard as Hereford horns
From braiding his reattas,
An art bequeathed from man to man
Since the first conquistadores.
He can name the names of old-timers
And tell you what they taught him.
He can name the names of long-dead mounts,
Like a heavenly remuda.
The old vaquero. He has lived the life,
Harsh--and blessed as freedom.
Now he sits his horse and views the hills
While history whispers through him.
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