I’m still not quite sure what a bolo tie is or why it even exists, but I know lots of white dudes in cowboy hats like to wear them. Associated with western wear, the official necktie of New Mexico (it’s a law, folks!) basically consists of a piece of cord or braided leather with some kind of decorative medallion. It’s also associated with 20th century Navajo silversmithing, the rockabilly movement, and any person who has a mullet.
Okay, so now that we’ve got the traditions covered, let me tell you about the Bolo Tie Museum. Yes, there is one, well actually it’s a collection, but still. Like New Mexico, Arizona also passed a law making it the official tie of the state. Bolo ties are so popular, there is even an Arizona Bolo Tie Society. They started a collection and needed somewhere to put it. Located about 50 miles outside of Phoenix, the Desert Caballeros Western Museum in Wickenburg is home to their archives where hundreds of bolo ties are displayed along with the history of this important official state neckware. Legend has it that Wickenburg resident Victor Cedarstaff created the tie in 1949. So it’s fitting this would be place to celebrate everything bolo. And a special exhibit over at the Heard Museum has proven to be so popular it has been open for an entire year. Alongside the museum’s permanent collection of more than 170 bolo ties are collector Norman L. Sandfield’s 1,000 bolo ties, scarf slides and ephemera. Okay, enough already…I think I’ve overdosed. No more ties!
