From rodeo to master craftsman: Ernie Marsh builds a life in silver and steel

Lovell area resident Ernie Marsh is an internationally acclaimed silversmith and bit and spur maker, a craftsman whose pieces are used by working cowboys and collected by museums and enthusiasts across the West. But his path to that recognition was anything but direct.

“I just wanted to be a cowboy,” Marsh said.

Born in California and raised largely in Washington state, Marsh spent his early years riding in amateur and professional rodeos and working ranch jobs. Like many in the industry during the 1980s, he was forced to adapt when the cattle market declined.

“I went down the road kicking rocks like a lot of people did,” he said.

After being laid off, Marsh found work in the logging industry in Washington. It was during that time, in 1990, that he enrolled in a four-week school to learn the fundamentals of making bits and spurs under noted craftsman Elmer Miller.

Even then, it wasn’t an immediate career shift. Marsh continued working in the woods until environmental regulations in the early 1990s again disrupted his livelihood.

“If I can’t do what I ought to do,” he remembered thinking, “I guess I’ll just do what I want to do.”

That decision set him on a path that would define the rest of his life.

Marsh eventually established a business in eastern Oregon, where a strong ranching culture supported the kind of high-quality, functional gear he produced. Over time, his work became known for its detailed engraving, balance and craftsmanship, blending artistic design with everyday use.

“I kind of prefer the term craftsman,” Marsh said with a laugh. “Artists are kind of crazy.”

In 2011, Marsh and his wife Teresa made the move to Wyoming, a place they had long admired from years of traveling to rodeos. After a few years in Star Valley, the couple settled in the Big Horn Basin, eventually purchasing property near Lovell.

“We’ve always loved Wyoming,” he said. “This just felt like the right place.”

From their rural home, Marsh continues to produce work that is sold through select western retailers, including the By Western Hands Gallery in Cody. His pieces have also been displayed at major institutions such as the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum and the Western Folklife Center.

Over the years, Marsh has received numerous honors, including the Will Rogers Award for Spurmaker of the Year from the Academy of Western Artists and a United States Artists Fellowship.

He is also a founding member and past president of the Traditional Cowboy Arts Association, an organization dedicated to preserving traditional western crafts.

But these days, Marsh is focused less on recognition and more on passing on what he has learned.

“I used to get all my inspiration from the older guys,” he said. “Now I’m kind of the old guy.”

That shift has led to a growing emphasis on teaching. Marsh and his wife have already hosted students at their home shop, and they are now working on a new facility near Greybull that will expand those efforts.

The goal is to create a place where students can learn not just silversmithing but a range of traditional western skills, including blacksmithing, leatherworking and saddle making.

“I’ve got friends in this business who have already said they’d come to help teach,” Marsh said. “I think it’ll be fun.”

Rather than long-term programs, Marsh envisions shorter, hands-on workshops that allow students to learn in stages and return to build on their skills.

Now firmly rooted in the Basin, Marsh says he appreciates the community as much as the landscape.

“I really like the people around here,” he said. “It seems like a really good place.”

After decades of following opportunities from rodeo arenas to logging camps to workshops across the West, Marsh has found something that feels a little more permanent.