Children peering into pit of rattlesnakes
Man peering into hole in ground
Man holding rattlesnake with tongs
Pit of rattlesnakes
Man holding snake's jaws open
Crowd watching snakes get killed
Snake heads in jars and dice made out of snakeskin
A man standing behind a large sign
People skinning snakes
Blood-splattered counter and buckets
Boy with rattlesnake head on chain
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Snake PitEach spring, the small city of Sweetwater, Texas, hosts what it bills as the world's largest rattlesnake roundup. Over three days, snake hunters bring in their catches (to make $5 a pound) and spectators gawk at the writhing, bloody spectacle. Here, a group of children peer into the window of a holding pit containing thousands of rattlesnakes. None of the snakes will survive the Roundup—they will be decapitated, then skinned. Read more about t...
Photograph by Ross McDermott, American Festivals Project

Rattlesnake Roundup

See photos of the 2009 Rattlesnake Roundup in Sweetwater, Texas, in this American Festivals Project travel photo gallery from National Geographic.

April 12, 2010
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