South Dakota poet laureate Bruce Roseland honored with Western Heritage Award

In July 2023, Bluestem posted There once was a gal from Castlewood/ who didn't pick a laureate when she knew she could, which explored Governor Kristi Noem's refusal to approve the South Dakota State Poetry Society's state poet laureate recommendation.

Fortunately, by the end of August, the Cricket Killer lost that battle, I noted in Update: South Dakota Poetry Society gets first choice, Bruce Roseland, for state laureate.

The state poetry society has proven to be a winner, the South Dakota Searchlight reveals.

South Dakota’s poet laureate honored with Western Heritage Award
by South Dakota Searchlight staff

Bruce Roseland, South Dakota’s poet laureate, is the winner of a 2025 Western Heritage Award from the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, with other honorees including the country music duo Brooks & Dunn and the streaming show “Yellowstone.”

Each winner receives a Wrangler Award, a bronze statue of a cowboy on horseback. The awards will be presented April 12 in Oklahoma City.

Roseland is the winner in the Poetry Book category for “Earl’s Own Dakota Odyssey,” a 2024 epic poem about the adventures of a modern-day western South Dakota ranch hand.

Roseland is a fourth-generation cattleman who ranches near Seneca. Then-Gov. Kristi Noem named him the eighth poet laureate of South Dakota in 2023. He has published eight books of poetry and won four national awards.

Photo: The cover of Bruce Roseland’s epic poem, “Earl’s Own Dakota Odyssey,” from Scurfpea Publishing.

This South Dakota Searchlight article is republished online under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.

Related posts

• South Dakota Poet Laureate Bruce Roseland: Tell me the what and the why of your life
• Update: South Dakota Poetry Society gets first choice, Bruce Roseland, for state laureate 
• There once was a gal from Castlewood/ who didn't pick a laureate when she knew she could,
• Gwen Westerman named Minnesota poet laureate

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