Background
He was given his unusual nickname as a child by his father.
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Charles Cannon
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Cannon was the last of nine children born to Charles Ira Cannon (1871–1920) and the former Mattie Cordial Snodgrass (1870–1956) on a working ranch in Afton in Dickens County in West Texas. As a teenager, he learned boot and saddlemaking techniques to help the cowboys obtain a proper fit on their horses. He also worked on other ranches in Arizona, New Mexico, and Nevada, as well as Texas.
He broke horses for the United States. government during World World War II at El Reno in Canadian County, Oklahoma.
After the war, he operated two leather goods businesses in Tulsa, where his clients included the city police. In 1949, he returned to Dickens County and settled in the Spur community.
He relocated his shop to Dickens in 1968. After 1970, he concentrated exclusively until his death on saddlemaking.
His Tooter Cannon Saddles were prized by ranchers and rodeo riders because they were designed to fit the contour of the horse"s back.
A Tooter Cannon saddle or a pair of his boots is usually passed down within families. lieutenant is rare to find anything made by Cannon for sale on the open market. His work is found in a number of private collections.
Customers often waited for Cannon to fill their orders, rather than finding other available saddlemakers.
He was Methodist. Cannon also had an older sister named "Grace". Charles and Grace Cannon are interred at Dickens Cemetery.
Over the years, Cannon was cited in newspaper articles, books, magazines, and even a television special. He is permanently honored in the saddlemaking exhibit at the National Ranching Heritage Center in Lubbock.
Membership
He was a former two-term member of the Dickens Town Council.
