The Pattillo Brothers with Knives

[Delmonico]

While not part of the US/Confederate armies, the Bushwhackers and Jayhawkers of the Missouri/Kansas border country seem to have stuck with their Bowies. Rosa's "Age of the Gunfighter" has a picture of a band of Jayhawkers, two of them clearly wearing cutlery-handled Bowies, and a portrait of notorious Bushwhacker George Maddox with a studded, coffin-handled Bowie stuck in his belt. It's a studio portrait but he looks all business. The Remingtons in his hands (he has 2 more in his belt!), clearly show their bullets and caps.  Admittedly, Bushwhackers gloried in their flamboyant appearance, with long, "cavalier" hair, embroidered shirts and fancy boots, and the Bowies no doubt added to the spectacle.

I'm away fron\m my resourses right now, but I am pretty sure I've read about some of them finishing some of the wounded off at Larence with knives. 

[GunClick Rick]

It's also said that a day that you don't learn anything is wasted. 

That feller learned he wished he had a knife and that he shouldn't of done what he did when he did it

[kflach]

One other thing that's often forgotten is that we have folks here with a very wide degree of experience. A photo that doesn't teach someone like Delmonico or St. George something may present a whole world of possibilities to someone like me who's brand new at this. There have been quite a few posts by Shotgun Steve that have led me to get online and do further research on something - even if I haven't commented on his original post. Granted, it's not necessarily 'scholarly' research (due to the acknowledged limitations of the internet) but it opens my eyes, plants thoughts, and encourages further learning. That's probably SS's greatest contribution. And in 40 years when I've been doing this as long as some of you, I'll be able to provide "scholarly" comments on occasion instead of the "thanks" or "wow" or "[insert smarty-pants comment here]" variety that I usually post.

;-)

[Delmonico]

Kflach, one thing experience will teach you is often photos are not that reliable of a source, many are not dated or even give an idea of where they were taken.  With out this information they do not go beyond "interesting."  Also one needs to be sure that the information stated is true.  I've seen several in books that are considered decent sources, yet the date on the picture can not be right because when one looks close you will see things in the picture that are newwer than the date given.

Something new in a picture is just a reason to dig a little deeper and find out if what you are seeing could be correct.  Any picture with a painted backdrop can be suspect because things can be studio props.  When you find several pictures where different people have the same gun rig and gun really brings this out. 

I've got several irons in the fire right now, plus files on two different computors, but when I get time I need to start a thread in The Historical Society about some of the things to look for based on things I have found in pictures, get some real interesting ones scanned from books that will make you think the picture editor never even looked hard.

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Delmonico,

I would really relish such a thread ... most of of my 'research' is surfing the web late at night after a day of volunteering, and it shows ... I have read one of the books you suggested in an earlier thread, the one on Elmer Keith and his life ...boy, would I like to have been a fly on the all and listen as he talked to friends .... just listened ....

But I digress ... what might be a real help in one of the first posts might be a list of books that you find useful ...

Just a thought...*S*

[Delmonico]

Go to a local library and look through any history book that was accounts of the old timers,written down while they were still alive.  Just read a good one, need to check the author, written in 1880 on his experiences in the CW.  "We Pointed them North" by Teddy Abbott is a good one.  Really good second hand accounts are "The Sodhouse Frontier, by Evertt Dick, or "The Pioneer History of Custer County" by Solomon Butcher.

[Delmonico]

I remembered, Butchers book is on-line.

http://www.archive.org/details/sdbutcherspione00butcgoog

The actual history is very local, specifically Custer County in The Sandhills of Nebraska.  But good stories about ordinary folks, leading fairly ordinary lives.  BTW Jerry Davenport aka Pitspiter, moderator of The Barracks lives in that county.  Also the GAF Dept of the Missouri Muster is going to be held in that county. 

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Delmonico,

Thanks for the suggestions, and I just added the online book to my 'favorites'

Right now I am reading 'Ramona' by Helen Hunt Jackson, a fiction avout the Californio and Indian life in Southern California ....and nest on the list is 'The Squatter and the Don', a thinly veiled 'fiction' about Mariano Vallejo and his interaction with the Yanquis ....

In the wings is 'Gold Rush Saints', about California Mormons, and 'Antonio's Journey', the fictional tale of an Italian who comes to America, joins with a wagon train to California in 1816. Because it is a fiction, the author places him in touch with the Gold Rush, the Pony Express, the Transcontinental Railroad, etc .... all books suggested by the Sacramento Museum folks ...

Looks like I am going to have to bone up on my speed reading ....LOL

[Delmonico]

Delmonico,

I would really relish such a thread ... most of of my 'research' is surfing the web late at night after a day of volunteering, and it shows ... I have read one of the books you suggested in an earlier thread, the one on Elmer Keith and his life ...boy, would I like to have been a fly on the all and listen as he talked to friends .... just listened ....

But I digress ... what might be a real help in one of the first posts might be a list of books that you find useful ...

Just a thought...*S*

I went ahead and started that thread:

http://www.cascity.com/forumhall/index.php/topic,33249.0.html

I had some things handy, but I will add more as I relocate them.

[GunClick Rick]

Hey Delmonico,you ever read a book titled ,the Log of a Cowboy? It's writtin in the way they talked then,little bit of a hard read.Writtin byAndy Adams first printed in the 1880s.

I also have one titled "With Spurs"that looks like it might be good.If ya want to read them i can send them to ya,i would like them back when your finished to keep in my library.I try to read and i just can't sit still long enough to get through a whole book.But some day i will do it! ;)You could read them now and tell us about them.

"With Spurs" has something to do with different cattle men and the driver and cowboys competeing especially when they meet on the trail goin and comin,set in Texas i believe.

[Delmonico]

I have a copy, the book though is fiction based on Adams's experiences on trail drives.  The Sons of the San Joaquin  song "Trail Drive" from the album  "Horses, Cattle And Coyotes" is based on the book.  Several years ago a friend of mine Roger Blomquist of Deseret Saddlery"

http://www.deseretsaddlery.com/

was at UNL working on his PHD, he loaned me a whole stack of similar books written or at least written off the experinces of several of the old trail drivers.  Sadly many of them are long out of print.  That book you mention was one of them.

[GunClick Rick]

Wow,how bout that,i don't have that cd,gonna have to get it.The Sons live here in Visalia out in the country,they were all teachers when i was growin up and used to have a burger place too,Hannahs Drive in ,also have a truckin buissness,Hannahs trucking,still goin strong..They do a Christmas concert here every year and they play right down the street at Mavericks coffe shop once and awhile.I sort of figured you had come across that book..