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	Gardner, Clem 1885-1963 Clem Gardner was one of Calgary’s last working cowboy when he died in 1963. He arrived in the Calgary area in 1886, when he was only six months old, after travelling with his family by covered wagon from Russell, Manitoba. His father was a captain in the Canadian militia, and had just returned from scouting the Alberta region of the West during the Riel Rebellion. He liked the area so much that, with his family and 100 head of cattle, he made the long trek west and settled on the banks of the Elbow River at Pirmez Creek, west of Calgary. Young Clem grew up surrounded by the livestock of his father’s ranch, and soon became an accomplished horseman, always picking the toughest broncs to ride, and the biggest steers to rope. He participated in all of the horse-related events in rodeos, from calf-roping to bronco riding, relay racing to the chuckwagon event. When the first Stampede was held in Calgary in 1912, Gardner missed winning the title by two seconds, as Cyclone, renowned throughout the West as the meanest and most difficult horse to ride, was ridden longer by Tom Three Persons. Gardner competed in the rodeo until he was 50 years old. In addition to competing in rodeos, Gardner was also involved in horse shows – as a contestant and a judge. He was also a top-notch polo player. Although Gardner gained fame for his horsemanship, it was also his horsemanship that provided his career. He ranched continuously, and, unlike many ranchers around him, he and his wife, Helen Taylor, (whom he married in 1911) survived the two depressions and bad winters during the twenties and thirties to create one of the biggest herds in Western Canada – over 2000 head of beef cattle. Gardner also served as president of the Alberta Thoroughbred Association, the Alberta Horse Breeders Association and was a member of the Alberta Light Horse Association. He and Helen had three children.
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