It ’ s About The Company You Keep
When Dr . Noel Bryan came to Parker County , he became the only veterinarian in the county . That was in the 1950s and he joined the Posse in 1959 . “ When I moved here , the Sheriff ’ s Posse was the organization in Parker County as far as I was concerned ,” Bryan said . “ This was an agricultural community and the posse was made up of ranchers , dairymen , bankers and lawyers . They were the hierarchy of Parker County . It was the type of organization I wanted to belong to . Eugene Polser and Boley Pearson got me into it . There were other good organizations in Parker County , like the Lion ’ s Club , and I belonged to them , but I was a country boy ; the Posse was my niche . When I built my clinic out on the Mineral Wells Highway , I put it there because the Parker County Sheriff ’ s Posse was just up the road .”
When asked what he considered to be the biggest challenge facing a Sheriff ’ s Posse Captain , Bryan said , “ Getting everyone on the same page .”
Bill Ward joined the Parker County Sheriff ’ s Posse 15 years ago . A native of Young County , he was a rancher ’ s son in love with all things western . Ward moved with his family to Parker County in 1965 .
“ I wanted to be in the Posse for a long time but I was running a business and didn ’ t feel like I had the time to devote to it . When I get into something , I want to be able to contribute to it ,” Ward said . “ The posse has always had a reputation for the great men that were members , men like Jack Borden , Boley Pearson and Tom Saunders . The Posse always has had so many well-known outstanding businessmen and ranchers in it that it ’ s really such an honor to be in the Posse .”
Part of the Posse mystique may have something to do with the fact that it isn ’ t easy to get into it . Ward was welcomed into the Posse fold the first time he applied , but he ’ s in the minority . “ I know people who have tried to get in three or four times before they were finally accepted ,” he said .
By the fall of 1947 , the Posse raised its membership cap to 50 members .
A valuable asset to the Posse is the Parker County Sheriff ’ s Posse headquarters . Not long after the Posse ’ s inception , interest and activities were growing by leaps and bounds , larger quarters were needed for meetings
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JUNE 2017 PARKER COUNTY TODAY
Parker County Frontier Days Rodeo is one of the community ’ s most exciting local traditions , the whole show is produced by the Parker County Sheriff ’ s Posse . It ’ s not just broncbusting and bullriding . World-class entertainers like trickrider Bree Worthington have been a part of the line-up in years past . The money raised by the rodeo goes to boost local youth-related charities .
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