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- Fort Worth Morning Register
December 29, 1900
Arizona Roping Contestregained his feet and made savage lunges at Bassett's horse and created a panic in the crowd by plunging his long horns through women's skirts.
Paysonrimcountry.com
A special from Phoenix, dated Sunday, says the most remarkable exhibition of steer tying in Arizona took place here today. Oscar Roberts and Joe Bassett, two noted cowboys, contest for a $1000 purse and the championship of Arizona.
The steers were unusually wild and put the spectators to flight several times by breaking through the fence and into the crowd. Roberts' time for the steers was six minutes fourteen seconds and Bassett's time 7:23.
Bassett made remarkable time on the first four steers and threatened to break the world's record, but he battled with his last steer, a ferocious brute, for more than two minutes before he had him tied, breaking the animal's legs and horns. The steer was thrown four times, and each time
Joe Bassett (1911-1973) was a top cowboy both on the range and in the arena. The highlight of his career came in 1942 when he won the title of World Champion Team Roper. The following year he was privileged to perform at Madison Square Garden, New York as a World Champion Team Roper. He stayed in the top ten in the Rodeo Cowboys Association team roping standings from 1945 to 1952. Again in 1952, he was named World Champion Roper, along with his partner, Asbury Schell.
Joe was known as the dean among trainers of racing Quarter Horses in Arizona. In 1969, he won the $100,000 Invitational Quarter Horse Stake Race at Los Alamitos, California, the top Quarter Horse meet in the nation.
Joe participated and won many Payson Rodeos. In the famous hotly-matched race of 1952, between Brown Bomber and Cindy McCue, Joe Bassett bull-dogged Wayne Ewing off his horse after the finish line because Ewing had batted Bomber in the face with his whip. Joe lost the race, but won the fight. Many had bet on this horse race, and when they saw the fight start, they put down bets on the fight.
Source Unknown
Joe Bassett was born in Mayer in 1911, and spent his childhood in Mayer, Payson and Phoenix areas coming to Gisela in 1934. He was by then already a well known professional cowboy. During his rodeo career he won the all around championship title at every major rodeo in Arizona. The highlight of his career came when he won the World Championship Team Roper title at Madison Square Garden in New York in 1942. He....the top ten in the Rodeo Cowboy Association team roping standings from 1945 until 1952. During this time he also owned and operated a ranch in Gisela, later owning and operating the H4 ranch in Tonto Basin until 1947, then he sold out and bought the HZ ranch and the ....ranches at Pinto Creek, near Roosevelt. He operated these ranches until 1972, when he sold out and concentrated on his talents on racing and raising quarter horses. He had five children, all children and spouses live in Arizona with a total of fifteen grandchildren. Since his death in 1973 and the Bassett tradition of raising quarter horses is carried on by his son John.
1920 Federal Census of Camp Verde, Yavapai County, Arizona (25 Jan 1920)
Joseph R. Bassett - 49 - M - TX-TX-TX - Head - Farming
Lola R. - 32 - F - IA-WI-MO - Wife
Hazel J. - 12 - F - AZ-TX-IA - Daughter
Joseph Jr. - 8 - M - AZ-TX-IA - Son
1940 Federal Census of Gila County, Arizona (1940)
Joseph R. Bassett 28 M Head AZ R. Gila AZ Rancher Stock Ranch
Dorthella 28 F Wife AZ R Gila AZ
Barbara J. 5 F Daughter AZ R Gila AZ
Shirley L. 2 F Daughter AZ
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Bassett Family Association Database
1911 - 1973 (61 years)