Hat's home

For fifty-five years the Tooke family searched and speculated about the hat Feek Tooke was wearing when he died during the eighth performance of the 1968 National Finals Rodeo in Oklahoma City. Where did it end up, and who took it?

Though much of the hat's life remains a mystery, Toby Tooke, Feek's great-grandson finally found its whereabouts around nine months ago. Finally, on Sunday the hat was unboxed at Carter County Museum.

Tooke surmised that since none of the family had ever seen the hat before, Feek must have purchased it on his way to Oklahoma City in 1968. When the hat was inspected upon the unboxing Sunday, a tag showed that it had been purchased in Baker for $20. Tooke also says that it would have been worn for only about seven days, from the first performance at the 1968 NFR, until the eighth performance.

Tooke actually found the hat's whereabouts while looking through a magazine he had received only because it included an article for the recent "Feek's Vision" documentary. He had helped with the article.

The magazine included a copy of the last known photo of Feek alive along with the caption: "The hat worn by Tooke in this photograph was featured with the hats of other rodeo greats, as well as famous artists, actors and historic figures, in a recent museum exhibition. For more see page 15."

So Tooke went to page 15. There it was, a much more recent photo of the hat Feek Tooke was wearing when he passed away from a heart attack at the NFR. Tooke said the hat was in a traveling museum exhibit. The collection includes hats from Casey Tibbs, Toots Mansfield, Tom Selleck, Clint Eastwood, and many more.

Tooke reached out to National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum Curator Michael Grauer to share history, learn history, and hopefully get the hat home to Ekalaka. After hearing what Tookes and Carter County Museum are doing for Feek and the history of Tooke Bucking Horses, Grauer agreed to transfer the hat to Ekalaka. With the help of CCM staff, the hat finally made it to Ekalaka some nine months later.

Grauer's paper trail on the hat was limited, but Tooke did learn that the hat was donated to the cowboy hall of fame by a Mrs. Thedford (or possibly spelled Thetford) in 1987. The nineteen years prior to that are a mystery.

Several family members were on hand for Sunday's unboxing. Ken Howie, director of the recently completed documentary "Feek's Vision," was also there to film the occasion.

"Ernest [Feek's son] and Thelma [Feek's widow] had searched for that hat and come up empty handed for years," Tooke said. "They both left use before knowing that Feek's hat will forever be home in Ekalaka where he started it all."

Feek's hat can now be seen as part of the Tooke Bucking Horses exhibit at Carter County Museum in Ekalaka. To learn more about the documentary film "Feek's Vision," visit https://www.feeksvision.com.