Happy Birthday Pistol Pete!
Monday, October 2, 2023
In honor of our beloved mascot's 162nd birthday and his 100th anniversary representing Oklahoma State, let’s take a look back at the man who inspired the face of our university!
Francis (Frank) Boardman Eaton—or as we all know him, Pistol Pete—was born on Oct. 26, 1860, in Hartford, Connecticut. When Frank was 8 years old, his family claimed a homestead in Kansas.
As an adult, Frank moved to Perkins, Oklahoma, and married his first wife Orpha Pearl Miller. Together, the pair had two daughters, but shortly after, Frank became a widower. He remarried in 1903 and had eight more children.
Retiring from law enforcement, Frank had a blacksmith shop on Main Street. His large mustache and double-braided hair were his ever-present trademark.
In 1923, students from our very own university—then known as Oklahoma A&M College—asked Frank to pose as the school's mascot after seeing him in an Armistice Day parade. He agreed and became the “original cowboy” and living symbol of OSU until his death. Frank Eaton has also been the inspiration for mascots for the University of Wyoming and New Mexico State University.
The memory of this Cowboy lives on in each of us who wear America’s Brightest Orange with pride. Happy birthday, Pistol Pete!
Read more of his story here!