When you hear the word cowboy, the first image that comes to mind may be a rodeo athlete, ranch hand, or even a character in a Western. While these depictions might vary, it is certain that legendary calf-roper T. Barrett "Teaberry" Porter would fit right in the picture.

Known as Louisiana's first professional cowboy, Teaberry was inducted into the Rodeo Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, in September of last year.

Over the course of his four-decade-long career, the 89-year-old not only blazed a trail for rodeo cowboys in his home state but also forged a lasting legacy that three generations of his family have carried on in the sport.

"It was nice, real nice," said Teaberry of his hall of fame induction. "I just hope I deserved it. When I went somewhere, I didn't want somebody to go back there and be ashamed of something I did. And that's one thing I would like to pass on to my grandchildren and great grands about rodeoing- to make friends wherever you go and to never do anything they would be ashamed of."

All four of Teaberry's children, including three daughters (Judy, Cathy, and Lindy) and one son (David), excelled in the high school and amateur rodeo ranks. That success trickled down to his grandchildren, all of whom have shown success throughout their rodeo careers.

Early Start In The Saddle

Teaberry's roping roots go all the way back to his boyhood in Louisiana. His father organized the first rodeo in their hometown of Leesville, La., in 1933 and borrowed the stock from local farmers who had a horse that couldn't be ridden or that would buck when it was plowed.

"I don't remember when I started roping, I just always did it," Teaberry said.

When he was about 15, Teaberry joined the Cowboy Turtles Association at a rodeo in Beaumont, Texas, because they wouldn't let him rope without paying his dues. He remained a member of the CTA until it became the Rodeo Cowboys Association and finally the PRCA.

Some of Teaberry's favorite memories from his career came in 1949 when he won the national calf-roping championship in New York City and captured a trio of titles in Fort Smith, Ark.

"I got to do things that no one will ever get to do again like ride a horse down Broadway after winning the national champion calf roping title in Madison Square Garden in 1949," he said. "One of the best memories I've got is in 49 when I won the bulldogging, the calf roping, and the all-around in Fort Smith. That's where I really got started for the year. Fort Smith was one of my favorite rodeos to go to because of the friends I made there. I never felt like I was the best, but I felt like I could beat the best if I got the right break."

While Teaberry enjoyed rodeoing, he didn't rodeo for a living. Instead, he rodeoed to have a little extra money.

"I was always worried about trying to make a living besides rodeoing," he said. "I ran a filling station, drove a school bus, drove trucks, hauled lumber and cows, and I was even a garbage man in Leesville. I even had a western store at one time. I went to LSU for a quarter and quit, went to McNeese a year and quit, school just wasn't for me. Even without an education I did all right, but it would have made it a little easier."

It wasn't until 1950 that he secured his first and only sponsorship as a Wrangler spokesman and was paid with "a couple hundred dollars and a few pairs of blue jeans." In 1959, Teaberry was the first cowboy from Louisiana to compete at the National Finals Rodeo, then held in Dallas, Texas.

A Legacy To Pass On

Though his way of life in rodeo could be demanding, Teaberry has always been generous with his time and willingness to pass along his knowledge to others.

When his children were rodeoing, Teaberry gave back to the sport by working as the barrier judge at the National High School Rodeo Finals from 1966-75 free of charge.

Through the years he has also allowed aspiring ropers to stop by his house and practice. Teaberry firmly believes "professional cowboys should always give back to the sport and help the younger generations learn and grow in the sport."

One of the things Teaberry cherishes the most from his career is the incredible amount of friendships he has formed across the country. Some of those friends were also inducted into the Rodeo Hall of Fame last year.

"Rodeoing is a lot different today than it was back then," he said. "The cowboys these days don't get to stay in a town for three or four nights at a time and create the kind of relationships with the folks in the towns that we did back then. Folks don't really get to know the cowboys these days like they did back then. We would have people coming just to see us at the small-town rodeos."

Even after a rodeo career that spanned more than 40 years, he still remains very active in the industry. He is the oldest member of the Leesville Lions Club, which produces an annual rodeo in Leesville to help raise money for the Louisiana Lions Camp for youth with special needs, diabetes, and pulmonary disorders.

While he is most known for his rodeo career, Teaberry is most proud of the title "cowboy." To him, being a cowboy is more than just rodeoing, it's a way of life. Even after a bad bulldozing accident in 2012 left him without his right arm, he can still be found checking his cows, bailing hay, and performing the day-to-day tasks that come with running a cow/calf operation with his son, David, on the original family land that Teaberry's father purchased in 1933.  

If you're looking for him around noon on a weekday, you can nearly always find him having lunch at his daughter-in-law Monya's restaurant "The Ranch House," located in the same building that once housed his old western store in Leesville.