Rancher honored for his cowboy legacy

KateLynn Slaamot
NLJ Reporter
 
The founding of the West and its way of life are built on the backs of many hardworking men and women, including Straitor Clark, a Sundance rancher who was born at the foot of the Inyan Kara Mountain in 1912. Clark was recently inducted, posthumously, into the Wyoming Cowboy Hall of Fame, honoring the legacy he left through the character he exemplified throughout his life. 
Clark, who is the father of Newcastle resident Janet Hutchinson, was born to Nate and Hilma Clark, as the oldest of nine children. The family lived in the Inyan Kara vicinity. 
The young Clark started working at a very tender age, so he didn’t continue his schooling past fourth grade. 
“At the age of 10 he helped trail pigs to the railroad loading grounds at Aladdin, Wyoming. At only 12 years old he helped Fred Henderson buy, round up and trail horses to the Big Horn Mountains, where they were sold to dude ranches. In his youth, he worked for various neighbors, always staying in the households where he was employed, while he learned the trade of farming and ranching. He was in the saddle on every ranch he worked on and greatly enjoyed working with horses,” Hutchinson said. 
As one in a large family during hard times, Clark needed to work to help support his family. Mike, Hutchinson’s husband, said Clark was willing to work for anybody. 
Barn dances were a popular form of entertainment and socialization, and in 1939, Clark met Elaine Sorenson. The two wrote letters for a few years while Elaine finished her high school career and Clark worked as a ranch hand for Louis Smith and then Albert Oakley Banks. In the summer of 1941, the couple married and lived on the Banks ranch. They stayed at that ranch for over 30 years, Hutchinson said, working as ranch hands and managers before leasing the land in 1954. The Clarks were the owners of the equipment and livestock. The land they ranched and farmed was over 8,000 acres, including forest permits and school section lands. They raised cattle, sheep and pigs, and wheat, oats, hay and alfalfa were among their crops. 
Horses were one of Clark’s first loves, Hutchinson said, and he was constantly doing something with horses, whether riding, training or driving a team. He even fed cattle in the winter with his sleigh. Hutchinson said it was exciting for her when she got to go with him, and especially when she got to drive the team. Joanne Nicholas, another of Clark’s daughters, said that he even had horses they could ride Roman style, which meant standing up, one leg on each horse. 
“He had a great love and understanding of horses. It was natural to him. He learned to break and ride horses at a very young age and had a true gift with a team of horses, breaking many to drive and pull a sleigh or wagon. He always had at least two teams of work horses that were used to feed cattle in the winter,” Hutchinson said. Elaine also had a great love for horses, and the two often took rides together. 
Clark and Elaine’s five children, James, Joanne, Judy, Janet and Larry, were all raised on the ranch — helping with various chores and ranch work. 
“He instilled in his children a hard work ethic, and to always cowboy up,” Hutchinson said.
And that work ethic wasn’t only taught to his children — it was exemplified by Clark as well. Hutchinson said that he often ranched during the light of day and did farm work at night, using the light on his tractor to see. He, in turn, also expected hard work from his children. 
“I helped to feed the chickens and gather eggs as a child, and then we also had milk cows. At one point on the ranch, we had seven milk cows, … then we would sell the cream and eggs in town to people. So, I learned to milk a cow at an early age,” Hutchinson said. “One of my favorite chores was feeding the bum lambs and calves,” Hutchinson added. 
The family had a permit that allowed them to graze their cattle on U.S. Forest Service land that bordered the ranch so every day someone would have to ride in and check the cattle. Hutchinson always enjoyed helping with that task. If there were problems, they would have to rope the calves and doctor them right there. 
Nicholas remembers her father’s hard work and diligence, and she appreciated those invaluable lessons from her dad. 
“You didn’t say you couldn’t do something; you just did what you needed to do. If you didn’t know how to do it, then you learned how to do it,” Nicholas said. 
She added that her dad used to say, “You’ll never be sorry you know how to do everything.” 
The lessons of hard work, new life in the spring, confidence and all the other knowledge that comes with a ranching lifestyle are gifts that Clark’s children say they are grateful for. 
“It’s a gift from God to get to be on the land and working it, and you want to bring that glory to God through your work,” Hutchinson said. 
And being a good steward of what God had gifted him was just what Clark did. Hutchinson said they always made sure fences were in good condition and never overgrazed their land. 
In 1970, when Hutchinson was only 15 years old, Banks died and the heirs to his ranch sold it. The Clarks had to sell all their livestock and equipment and move to Sundance. 
Hutchinson hadn’t realized before then that they didn’t own the ranch, she said, and was heartbroken as she left the only home she had known. She still kept her 4-H animals and a horse. 
Even after moving to Sundance, however, Clark continued with his avid community involvement and hardworking ways. He bought a tractor and helped move snow in town. He also continued to help in 4-H. Clark was also employed with the Wyoming Highway Department until he was 70. 
Clark didn’t give up on ranch work either, knowing that was something he never truly wanted to stop doing. On many occasions, he helped out local ranchers with chores that needed done. 
Clark died in 2008 at the age of 96, yet his legacy lives on. Starting from nothing, he truly built a life for himself and his family, Hutchinson said. 
“One of his last wishes was to be buried with his boots on,” Hutchinson said. 
Hutchinson and Nicholas are proud of their father’s legacy, so his being honored in the Wyoming Cowboy Hall of Fame means a lot. 
“I was just really happy that they recognized my dad. He was definitely a Wyoming cowboy. He was born and raised in Wyoming. … I learned a lot from him, and of course I loved him very much,” Nicholas said.