Marion Aimone, whose nickname was Black Hat, was granted 160 acres of land at Heart Mountain Relocation Center. Whether this land grant came under the Homestead Act, or as a special program for returning WWII veterans, is not known. He irrigated the land using a siphon tube out of a ditch, turning the sagebrush to cropland. While at Heart Mountain he used the trunk of his car to sneak children into the Cody Nite Rodeo, where he bulldogged and rode saddle broncs. He won at least one all-around title in Kemmerer and won the Pro Bulldogger title in Lander in 1949. Like his siblings he worked in agriculture in Bridger Valley, tending sheep and cattle, putting up hay and mending fence. His three sons, Jerry, Monte, and Casey also took part in rodeo competition riding broncs, bulls, and team roping. When gathering and working cattle, he liked to use mules. Black Hat had been born near the Blacks Fork, and that is where he died when he went to check his sheep seventy years later and did not come home for supper.
Martin Aimone
