The history
of my homeland, the American West, has been of interest to me for as long as I
can remember. From Indians to Spanish and Mexican colonizers to explorers to
mountain men to pioneer settlers to mining boom towns, I like learning about it
all.
But, mostly,
I am intrigued by cowboys and the cattle trails and ranges and ranches where
they worked. So it will be of no surprise to anyone with similar interests to
know that you’ll find a well-thumbed copy of Cowboy Culture: A Saga of Five Centuries by David Dary on the
bookshelf beside my desk.
The book is
thoroughly researched, extensive in its reach, and well written. I’ve read it
through on more than one occasion. And I refer to it often when verifying facts
for something I’m writing, or merely to satisfy my curiosity about some person
or place or event. In fact, I just picked it up, and there are no fewer than thirteen
bookmarks sticking out of it.
While I
cannot claim to know David Dary well, it was a pleasure, on two occasions, to
share a table with him at Western Writers of America banquets. (His company was
much more enjoyable than the food.)
If you
haven’t read Cowboy Culture, you
should. You’ll soon see why it won the Wrangler Award from the National Cowboy
and Western Heritage Museum, the Spur Award from Western Writers of America,
and the Westerners International Award.
And you’ll
come away knowing about real cowboys, as opposed to the fast-riding, gun-toting
“cowboys” of movie, TV, and Western novel fame who seldom, if ever, cross paths with a cow.
Post Script: I just learned from one of our readers that David Dary passed away just one week ago. That's the loss of a fine historian, writer, and man.
Post Script: I just learned from one of our readers that David Dary passed away just one week ago. That's the loss of a fine historian, writer, and man.
