Humble Beginnings
The “King of
the Cowboys” Roy Rogers spent his childhood from age 8 to 17 in this house, built by his family, before moving to California
in 1931 and becoming a movie star.
The house is located approximately four miles west of Lucasville
on Roy Rogers Road of Duck Run Road off State Route 348.
The house is privately owned now and not available for
inside tours.
A True American Icon
One of the
most influential icons of American popular culture in the mid-20th century, Roy Rogers was born Leonard Franklin Sly on November
5, 1911 in Cincinnati.
He moved to this farm at age 8 from Portsmouth and
lived here with his family until the Great Depression. He went to California in 1930, working as a truck driver, fruit picker,
and country musician before signing a movie contract with Republic Pictures in 1937.
Immediately
popular, the clean-cut singing cowboy appeared in more than 100 western films, often making six or more movies a year during
the 1940s. With his nearly equally-famous horse Trigger and his wife and partner Dale Evans - "the Queen of the West"
- he subsequently starred in more than 100 television episodes of the family-oriented Roy Rogers Show from 1951 to 1957.
A perennial hero and "good guy," Rogers personified the mythical American
cowboy who always fought fairly and lived by a strong moral code.
He died in
California on July 6, 1998.
A
historical marker was erected in front of the home in 2000 by the Ohio Bicentennial Commission, The Longaberger Company, The Roy
Rogers/Dale Evans Collectors Association and The Ohio Historical Society.
A photo of
the mark is located to the right.
Roy Rogers Riders Club Rules
1. Be neat and clean.
2.
Be
courteous and polite.
3. Always obey your parents.
4. Protect the weak and help them.
5. Be brave, but never take chances.
6. Study hard and learn all you can.
7. Be kind to animals and care for them.
8. Eat all your food and never waste any.
9. Love God and go to Sunday school regularly.
10. Always
respect our flag and our country.
