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95+ Cowboy Horse Names – Organized by Horse Color

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When it comes to horse names, sometimes it is nice when your horse’s name has a story. Some connection to the past that you can share with others when you are out riding. That’s how I got the idea to expand on my list of 170+ Western Horse Names with this article and focus on just Cowboy Horse Names.

If you are looking for a nice, long list of famous horses check out this book  on Amazon.com.

Cowboy leading horse herd through dust and sage brush during horse drive

Here you’ll find a list of horses who belonged to a true cowboy (or cowgirl). Most are from movies and films. A few are known to have traveled around doing performances! Where possible I’ve grouped them by the horse’s color (when known)!

Top 10 Cowboy Horse Names for Male Horses

  1. Trigger – Palomino, ridden by Roy Rogers.
  2. Duke – Gray, ridden by John Wayne
  3. Starlight – White (possibly a few spot Appaloosa based on historic photos), ridden by John Wayne
  4. Dollor – Chestnut/Sorrel, ridden by John Wayne
  5. Silver – White, ridden by the Lone Ranger
  6. Buck – Buckskin, ridden by Ben Cartwright in Bonanza
  7. Cochise – Paint, ridden by Little Joe in Bonanza
  8. Chub – Bay, ridden by Hoss in Bonanza
  9. Sport – Sorrel, ridden by Adam in Bonanza
  10. Rex – Black, starred in several movies including “The King of the Wild Horses “

Other Famous Cowboy Horses

Many of the horses and riders below were photographed and filmed in black and white. I have organized these horses by color when known, reasonably assumed or referenced in an article.

Bay Horses

  • Amelia – Bay, ridden by Dan James
  • Banner – Bay, ridden by Don Barry
  • Can Can Lena – Dark bay, ridden by Stacey Westfall
  • Chub – Bay, ridden by Hoss in Bonanza
  • Cyclone – bay, ridden by Don Barry
  • Ozzie – dark bay, ridden by Dan James
  • Poncho – bay, ridden by Bobby Kerr
  • Scamper – Bay, ridden by Charmayne James
  • Smokey – Dark Bay or Black, ridden by Bernice Walsh McLaughlin

Black Horses

  • Black Diamond – black, ridden by Lash Larue
  • Black Jack – probably black, ridden by Allan Lane
  • Boy– black, ridden by Tom Tyler
  • Midnight – probably black, ridden by Hoot Gibson
  • Midnight – probably black, ridden by Tim McCoy
  • Rex – Black, starred in several movies including “The King of the Wild Horses “
  • Thunder – black, ridden by Wild Bill Elliott

Buckskin Horses

  • Buck – Buckskin, ridden by Ben Cartwright in Bonanza
  • Buttermilk – Buckskin, ridden by Dale Evans

Palomino Horses

  • Goldie – palomino, ridden by Hoot Gibson
  • Lightning – Palomino, ridden by Tim Holt
  • Loco – Palomino with at least one blue eye, ridden by “Pancho” in the Cisco Kid
  • Reno – palomino, ridden by Johnny Mack Brown
  • Rebel – palomino, ridden by Johnny Mack Brown (formerly namedReno)
  • Silver King – palomino, ridden by Fred Thomson
  • Spider Pig – palomino, ridden by Dan James
  • Tarzan, the Wonder Horse – palomino, ridden by Ken Maynard.
  • Trigger – Palomino, ridden by Roy Rogers.

Sorrel/Chestnut Horses

  • Apollo – chestnut, ridden by Dan James
  • Champion the Wonder Horse – chestnut, ridden by Gene Autry
  • Copper – sorrel, ridden by Bruce Campbell
  • Comet – sorrel, ridden by Bruce Campbell on The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.
  • Dollor – Chestnut/Sorrel, ridden by John Wayne
  • Flashlight – Sorrel/Chestnut, ridden by Tom Tyler
  • Koko “The Miracle Horse of the Movies” – Very Dark LiverFlaxen Chestnut, ridden by Rex Allen
  • Maypop – Chestnut/Sorrel, ridden by Bobby Kerr
  • Merv – Sorrel/Chestnut, ridden by Tom Hagwood
  • Sport – Sorrel, ridden by Adam in Bonanza
  • Tony “The Wonder Horse” – sorrel/chestnut, ridden by Tom Mix.

Paint Horses

  • Bullet – paint, ridden by Charles Starrett
  • Cochise – Paint, ridden by Little Joe in Bonanza
  • Diablo – Black and White Overo with Blue Eyes, ridden by the Cisco Kid
  • Fritz “The Wonder Horse” – Tobiano Paint – ridden by William S. Hart
  • Lucky – Tobiano Paint, ridden by Raymond Hatton
  • Silver Cloud – Tobiano Paint (possibly palomino), ridden by Hardy Murphy
  • Sonny – tobiano paint, ridden by Wild Bill Elliott

White/Gray Horses

  • Baron – white, ridden by Tom Tyler
  • Bullet – gray/white, ridden by Whip Wilson (formerly Silver Bullet)
  • Cactus – gray/white, ridden by Sunset Carson
  • Duke – white/gray ridden by John Wayne
  • Eagle – Gray, ridden by Buck Jones
  • Jingle Bob – gray, ridden by Bobby Kerr
  • Mutt – probably black, ridden by Hoot Gibson
  • Raider – white/cremello, ridden by Charles Starrett
  • Rebel – white, ridden by Reb Russell
  • Ring Eye – white (possibly Appaloosa) – ridden by Smiley Burnette (also called Black-Eyed Nellie and Ring-Eyed Nellie)
  • Rocket – gray/white, ridden by Whip Wilson (formerly Silver Bullet)
  • Rush – black, ridden by Lash LaRue (formerly called Black Diamond)
  • Sandy – Gray, ridden by Buck Jones
  • Scout – white, ridden by Johnny Mack Brown
  • Silver (also called Silver Buck) – Gray, ridden by Buck Jones
  • Silver – white/cremello, ridden by the Lone Ranger
  • Silver Bullet – gray/white, ridden by Whip Wilson
  • Starlight – white, ridden by Jack Perrin
  • Starlight – White (possibly a few spot Appaloosa based on historic photos), ridden by John Wayne
  • Swampy – gray, ridden by Dan James
  • Tarzan – white, ridden by Ken Maynard
  • Topper – white, ridden by Hopalong Cassidy
  • White Flash – cremello/white, ridden by Tex Ritter

Other Cowboy Horses

Some of these horses it’s hard to make out color because they were filmed or photographed in black and white. Without a specific color reference in an article, or a colorized poster or video, I just grouped these horses here.

  • Ace – ridden by Bruce Campbell
  • Duke – (dark), ridden by Tim Holt
  • Feather – ridden by Allan Lane
  • Falcon – ridden by Buster Crabbe
  • King – ridden by Bill Cody
  • Knight – ridden by Rod Cameron
  • Mike – ridden by George O’Brien
  • Old Blue – possibly a roan, ridden by Tom Mix
  • Old Buck – possibly a light buckskin or palomino, ridden by Hardy Murphy
  • Rusty the Wonder Horse – ridden by Chief Thunder Cloud in Trail Blazers
  • Scout – ridden by Jack Hoxie
  • Shamrock – ridden by Bob Livingstone
  • Silver – ridden by Sunset Carson
  • Steel – ridden by Tim Holt and others.
  • Sun Dance – ridden by Tim Holt

Resources

You might be surprised how much detail goes into tracking down some of these names and details. Here are some websites I found helpful when researching this article. MANY of them have photos of the horses which I can’t repost due to copyright laws.