The richest, most glamorous gold mines in the Old West possessed quartz with gold. Quartz with gold was not rounded or water worn. It was very bright, irregular, high quality, and often twisted in form. Quartz with gold was found in massive underground gold mines rather than surface placer mines. Quartz is a natural […]
Looking Over His Shoulder by Stephen Bly Every era and generation has its unwritten rules of proper behavior. The Old West was no different. One of those had to do with the proper way for a cowboy to turn around, looking over his shoulder. He didn’t want to do it too often or it would signal […]
A Bit of Old-Fashioned Preachin’ Old West movies conjure up a lot of images. Fast draw gunfights in the streets. Outlaws with bandannas over their faces robbing banks. Lawmen jumping off horses onto backs of fleeing bad men. Goodhearted women of easy virtue. And the town drunk full of demon liquor. Not all the images […]
One of the loneliest Old West jobs had to be the line rider. In the Old West days before Joseph Glidden’s patented barbed wire invention crossed the prairies, ranchers found it difficult to keep their cattle on the home range. To keep them from wandering to a neighbor’s pasture or getting lost in the wilderness, […]
Old West Saying: Wink As Good As A Nod … Tracks Along The Trail with Stephen Bly An Old West saying went, “A wink is as good as a nod to a blind mule.” In other words, if the mule is blind, no amount of motion whatever is going to motivate him. You could stomp, […]
An Old West Western Slang Devotional by Stephen Bly An Old West type ladino character, J.W. lives back in the woods along the Salmon River Breaks somewhere. You take the gravel road 18 miles. Turn left at the big buckskin tamarack. Then 15 miles down a dirt and mud rutted trail. Park your rig and hike […]
Bury Me With My Boots On by western author Stephen Bly Whenever I hear the phrase, “Bury me with my boots on,” I’m reminded of a scene … The lady seemed restless, like she wanted to ask me something important. The pastor and his well-dressed wife had met me at the airport and she hadn’t […]
Hounds Ears, Whirlups & Pooch, Cowboy Dessert Recipes of the Old West by western author Stephen Bly Here’s several cowboy dessert favorites: HOUNDS EARS AND WHIRLUPS* Drop thin sourdough batter from a spoon into hot grease until dough spreads into shape of a dog’s ear. Fry until brown. Make Whirlup Sauce from water, sugar, and […]
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