Alvin Nelson

Saddle Bronc Riding • Inducted 2004

While Alvin Nelson of Grassy Butte, N.D., started his career as a three-event roughstock cowboy, he excelled at saddle bronc riding as a professional. Born on April 5, 1934, in Mobridge, S.D., Nelson turned pro in 1953.  During his 13-year career, he won a world title, claimed two aggregate crowns at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo and qualified for the Wrangler NFR five times. He earned the 1957 world saddle bronc riding title, ending a string of six consecutive titles won by fellow Hall of Famers Casey Tibbs and Deb Copenhaver. Nelson went on to claim the aggregate title at the Wrangler NFR in 1961-62.  He also was the all-around champion of the 1961 Wrangler NFR. Nelson is also a member of the National Cowboy Hall of Fame and North and South Dakota Cowboy Halls of Fame.

World Championships: 1

Saddle Bronc Riding: 1957

Born: April 5, 1934 in Mobridge, South Dakota
Died: December 23, 2014 in Rochester, Minnesota

Black Hills Roundup / Belle Fourche, SD
All-Around: 1956
Bareback Riding: 1956
Saddle Bronc Riding: 1956, 1960, 1961, 1962

Cheyenne Frontier Days / Cheyenne, WY
Saddle Bronc Riding: 1962

Deadwood Days of ’76 Rodeo / Deadwood, SD
Saddle Bronc Riding: 1954

Grand National Stock Show & Rodeo / San Francisco, CA
Saddle Bronc Riding: 1957

Guymon Pioneer Days Rodeo / Guymon, OK
All-Around: 1956

Iowa’s Championship Rodeo / Sidney, IA
Saddle Bronc Riding: 1961

La Fiesta de los Vaqueros Rodeo / Tucson, AZ
Bareback Riding: 1956
Saddle Bronc Riding: 1960

National Western Stock Show & Rodeo / Denver, CO
Saddle Bronc Riding: 1956, 1966

Pendleton Round-Up / Pendleton, OR
Saddle Bronc Riding: 1956, 1957

Redding Rodeo / Redding, CA
Saddle Bronc Riding: 1960

Snake River Stampede / Nampa, ID
Saddle Bronc Riding: 1960, 1961