Generations of kids wore Hopalong Cassidy hats and carried Hoppy lunch boxes without knowing that the cowboy’s creator was born in Streator. Here is the story of Clarence E. Mulford and the trail that honors him. Find more local figures on our History of Streator page.
Born in Streator
Clarence Edward Mulford was born in Streator in 1883. His childhood home still stands beside the Vermilion River near the Bridge Street bridge. As an adult he moved east, and he spent most of his writing life in Fryeburg, Maine.
Creating Hopalong Cassidy
In 1904, while living in Fryeburg, Mulford wrote the first Hopalong Cassidy short story. His first novel, Bar-20, named for the ranch where Cassidy worked, came out in 1906. Mulford’s Cassidy was nothing like the later screen hero. He was rough-talking, short-tempered and dangerous, and he walked with a limp from a gunshot wound to the leg, which gave him his nickname.
Mulford wrote 28 Hopalong Cassidy novels plus many short stories. The last novel, Hopalong Cassidy Serves a Writ, appeared in 1941. He was known for careful research. His biographer, Francis Nevins, credits him with originating the Western series built around recurring characters, and his characters grew older from book to book, which was unusual for the genre.
From Page to Screen
In 1935 Hollywood brought Hopalong Cassidy to film with actor William Boyd. Boyd played the character in 66 films between 1935 and 1948. His Hoppy was a clean-cut hero who drank sarsaparilla and never shot first, a long way from Mulford’s original. When Boyd bought the television rights from Mulford and put the films on NBC in 1949, Hopalong Cassidy became the first network Western television series and set off a merchandising craze. In 1950 Hoppy appeared on the first lunch box to carry an image.
However far they strayed from the books, the movies made his creation one of the best-known cowboys in America. He died in Portland, Maine, in 1956, and set aside much of his book money for local charities.
The Hopalong Cassidy River Trail
Streator remembers its author with the Hopalong Cassidy River Trail, a flat path about half a mile long on the bank of the Vermilion River. The trail is mostly gravel, with paved sections next to the Bridge Street bridge, and it is lined with mulberry, oak and maple trees. It is also part of the city’s flood control system, a reminder of the river’s history covered on our floods and storms page. Mulford’s boyhood house is beside the trail.
A Literary Hometown
Mulford belongs to a group of Streator natives who made names for themselves in popular culture, including songwriter and minstrel star George “Honey Boy” Evans, who called Streator home. See our notable natives page for more.
Reading Mulford Today
Mulford’s original novels are back in print in various editions, and several are in the public domain. Readers who know only William Boyd’s polite Hoppy may be surprised by the hot-tempered cowhand Mulford actually wrote.
Related Streator History
- Streator History Overview
- George "Honey Boy" Evans: The Minstrel Star Who Called Streator Home
- Notable Streator Natives: Inventors, Artists, Musicians and Leaders
- Streator Storms and Floods: The 1903 Tornado to the 2026 EF3
Sources
- Clarence E. Mulford – Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarence_E._Mulford
- Hopalong Cassidy – Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hopalong_Cassidy
- Hopalong Cassidy River Trail – Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hopalong_Cassidy_River_Trail
- Streator, Illinois – Wikipedia (Notable people). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streator,_Illinois
