stock, although some wranglers considered dudes ornerier than livestock. Competition with ever larger and more professional cattle operations around this time possibly also contributed to this trend. In 1923 a dude ranch opened in Hawaii, modeled after those in Wyoming. In 1926, the Dude Ranchers Association was founded in Billings, Montana, to represent the needs of this rapidly growing industry. Advertisements during this era were often aimed at the upper class and stressed the beauty of the natural scenery, the healthiness of being outdoors, and the wildlife. Recently established national parks in the area were also an added tourist attraction. During the Great Depression the industry continued to expand, likely as an alternative income source as real cattle ranches were experiencing financial troubles. In the 1930s dude ranches proliferated along with the Rocky Mountains and around Palm Springs in California, while becoming rarer in Texas. Many of these areas were inhospitable for cattle, and stock and fodder had to be imported during the dude season. In 1935 the industry boomed, and Western railroad companies advertised destinations to paying guests. Airlines and travel bureaus also began to enter the business in this period. The University of Wyoming began to offer a degree in recreational ranching, and one could take a four-year course in dude wrangling. Most of the patrons hailed from New York at this time. As the trips became more popular and less affluent people began to become interested, there was an economic incentive to establish lower-cost dude ranches in the East, including in New York State. In 1943 the Eastern Dude Ranchers' Association was formed. Throughout the 1940s business remained good, as wars throughout the rest of the world made foreign travel less attractive. In the 1950s the growth leveled off, with the number of registered dude ranches in 1958 dropping off to 100 "bona fide" ranches. Especially in Arizona and California, the industry became more professional, with dude ranches becoming more like country clubs with elegant rooms and diverse recreational amenities such as tennis courts, golf, and heated swimming pools, catering to some 200 guests at a time by the 1960s. Agriculture was no longer practiced, and many ranches no longer held any cattle. Establishments with horses for guests needed to import fodder. In turn, other ventures began to turn away from the term, advertising themselves as not a luxury resort or a dude ranch, but a working