As these photos reveal, a cowboy's life was a hard one, but living freely on America's western frontier nevertheless appealed to thousands of men. These photos were taken across the American West ...

There are also lesser-known working communities in authentic cowboy country that embrace their Old West heritage — such as Wickenburg in Arizona ... great examples of Western art at the Desert ...

Watson's hat shop in Cave Creek specializes in a 64-step process to make the perfect Arizona cowboy hat. Sheridan says his new hat helps people recognize him as sheriff and connect to Arizona's ...