Native American Food by Cora Leland

 My latest book, Rescuing the Indian's Bride, demanded huge amounts of research, and a great deal of looking back to my childhood, about American Indian food skills.  The book concerns 'the lords of the Plains,' the Lakota Sioux.

One of their main tenets was the division of labor.  Men risked their lives big-game hunting, and women butchered and processed the meat.  Some of the meat was easily eaten fresh; their diet was meat-heavy.  The tribe's women members also dried the meat, cutting it into thin strips and drying it in the sun.  The resulting dried meat, mixed with fruit, was called Pemmican. Women also gathered plants for medicine, like sage for colds and pneumonia, American Elm for TB, raspberries, plums and nutritious leaves similar to spinach. 

Looking back, especially helping my father hunt, required that I be honest with myself.  I'll never forget the steady drip, drip, drip of blood dropping onto my feet from squirrels he'd shot and I gladly carried by their tails.  He could walk soundlessly through the dense underbrush to where hunting was best, never speaking until we were at home, and he described -- with his fingers -- to my mother the birds and animals we'd seen. 

The important Plains Indian tribes were big game hunters.  They shot such large animals as pronghorns, elk, and buffalo. 

Pronghorn

Plains Indians also brought home smaller animals for their families' every day eating.   The women planted kitchen gardens, as well as finding a large variety of vegetables in the wild.   Some wild roots were used in soups and stews, some were baked in ashes for days, some were grated, others were eaten immediately for snacks. Other herbs and plants, such as the fruit of the peyote cactus, were used for sacred ceremonies.

The Crow Indian Peyote Ceremony

Oglala Sioux Priest during ceremony

As large mammals grew scarce, the Plains Indians relied more on inter-tribal warfare, and finally (when they'd come to live on reservations)on the federal government for food subsidies. In the late 1880's and on, as Native populations entered the age of assimilation, farming was seen as the best skill for them to develop.  

In my Oglala-settler romance, my hero, Thunder Hawk,  was able to study farming and his tribe was open to learning from him. (They saw his wife, Elizabeth, as the embodiment of goodness.)  After discussing sage with the couple, the chief's allopathic doctor prescribed sage tea for Chief Eagle Voice's pneumonia.  (There was no cure for pneumonia until the next century.)

Desert sage

(I found at least three types of sage plants in the desert.  I never saw sage bloom, though the cacti did bloom after the rains.)

Crow Indians followed the guidance of their chief in 1884, who promoted the tribe's farming. (His vision quest as a young man stated this was a necessity.)  Chief Plenty Coups changed from a complete nomad to his tribe's leader for surviving on a reservation.  He used his small individual land allotment from the federal government (given as part of the Dawes Act) for growing crops.

Crow Chief Plenty Coups

However, the Native peoples of the American southwest, such as the Hopi and Navajo, have been agriculturists for centuries.  Their farming skills match the dry climate to perfection.  For example, they have irrigated and rotated their crops for decades. Fertile land is rare, so fields are often terraced.  Their basic foods are similar to Mexican and Andean dishes.  

Their recipe for Sweet Tamales is very similar to tamales I ate in the high Andes of Ecuador.  Here is the recipe.

Sweet Tamales (Nijilo’i)

Ingredients: 25 lbs of white cornmeal 1 cup white sugar 2 cups raisins 1/4 cup ground wheat sprouts 1 basketful of corn husks l large pot of simmering water

Mix white cornmeal in handfuls into a large pot of simmering water. Stir the cornmeal with stirring sticks, removing all lumps. Add the sugar. Add the raisins. Stir. Stir in the wheat sprouts.

In a separate pan soak corn husks in simmering water. Make small packages of the cornmeal by wrapping them in soaked corn husks and tie with strips of corn husks. Put the wrapped packages in a pot and boil for 1 hour, adding water as needed. Cool

Servings: approximately 300

Tribe: The Navajo Nation

Note: Commonly served with coffee and mutton stew.

Nutrients per serving: Calories: 144 Total fat: 1 g. Carbohydrate: 31 g. Saturated fat: 0 g. Protein: 3 g. Polyunsaturated fat: 0 g. Sodium: 2 mg. Cholesterol: 0 mg

(A stirring stick is a bundle of dried herbs that is used for stirring and even for frying.  It keeps the dough from clumping.) 

*

I'd be happy to share a pdf of The Native American Cookbook.  Perhaps the best way to reach me is through the comments.  

THE COWBOY UNIFORM By Cheri Kay Clifton

 

     When it comes to our cowboy hero, we picture him wearing his most treasured possessions, his hat and his boots.

      But how about the other garments the cowboy wears?  Although less legendary, his other clothing was just as important, especially for their practical use.

      For instance, the neckerchief, also called the bandana.  The simple square of cotton was folded around the neck so that it could be pulled over the nose and mouth to mask trail dust.  Not only to protect his neck from the blazing sun, the kerchief also could be used as a bandage, a tourniquet or to wipe the sweat off his brow.

      The bandana originated in India and came from the Hindu word, bandhnu, describing a method of fabric dying. The 19^th Century cowboy soon had made a fashion statement, the scarf worn in popular bright colors, preferably red and in printed designs of spots, calico and later, paisley.

       His long-sleeved shirts were collarless, made of neutral colors of cotton for summer, wool for winter.  Some had a heavier bib front panel for extra warmth.  Not until the Wild West shows became popular, did the cowboy start wearing fancier colored, embroidered shirts.

      An iconic piece that says “cowboy loud and clear,” is the vest. A cowboy spent much of his time in the saddle and found it difficult to reach into his pockets astride a horse.  The vest with deep pockets was convenient for holding small items such as a knife, money, tobacco or a pocket watch attached on a chain. 

      Most of us western writers already know the history of Levi Strauss and his patented canvas work pants that provided the cowboy with a much sturdier pair of pants than the baggy woolen pants he’d worn before, and of course, it wasn’t long before the cotton blue fabric, denim became the work pants of choice.

      Another addition to the working cowboy’s gear is the seatless leather pants called chaps, derived from the Spanish word, chaperejos, meaning leather breeches. They protected his legs while riding the range full of dense brush and cactus as well as providing another layer of warmth in the winter. In the northern states, some wore goat hair pants. Wide chaps protected the flanks of the horse and the cowboy could put them on without taking off his boots; other styles were narrow and tight around the rider’s legs and were sometimes called leggings or shotguns.  

      Also worn on the trail by cowpokes to protect their clothing from the dust of cattle drives was the loose-fitting long duster coat.  These duster coats usually had slits up the back for riding ease, but often had the capability to be buttoned closed.  Legs straps were included to help keep the flaps in place and later versions included a detachable cape or hood to help fight against the elements.  The improved fabric was usually light colored canvas or linen type cloth.  Eventually, the duster needed to be improved as a reliable raincoat, thus the oilskin duster or slicker was born.

      Spurs are one of the distinctive pieces of equipment that have been used by horsemen throughout the ages and certainly one of the most recognizable symbols of the western cowboy. 

      The very old word derives from Anglo-Saxon spura, to kick.  The generalized sense of “anything that urges on, stimulus” is recorded in English from circa 1390.

      In the days of chivalry, spurs and the metal from which they were made were a mark of rank.  Hence the expression “to earn your spurs.”  Today they are a standard piece of cowboy equipment and, as with most horse equipment, the design varied widely depending upon the region and the wearer.

      Spurs are designed to be worn in pairs on the heels of riding boots for the purpose of directing a horse to move forward or laterally while riding.  It is usually used to refine the riding aids (commands) and to back up the natural aids (the leg, seat, hands, and voice).

      In the U.S. spur styles have changed through the years. In colonial days, the English style was popular, the spurs were light and conservative with a slight curve and small rowel.  Straight shanked hunting spurs were also popular. 

      The regulation spur worn in the cavalry in 1882 was solid brass, slightly curved, with a small rowel, leather straps and brass buckle.  The same type was popular during the Civil War.  Early cavalry officer’s uniform required boots and spurs.  They had a standard version, a dress version that was lighter, and an extremely light dance spur for social functions.

      Many a cowboy liked wearing his spurs for show, adding “jingle bobs” near the rowel to create a jingling sound when he walked.

      Gauntlet gloves were a necessity on the trail and cowboys often wore wrist cuffs to protect the wrist, forearm and shirtsleeve from injury or damage by ropes, branding irons, brush, wire fencing and other hazards.  

      Last but certainly not least….one more necessary item worn under it all….

Long Johns.  Worn under the cowboy’s working clothing, long johns, or one piece underwear covered the body from neck to ankle and had a long buttoned opening down the front. 

            One may ask where such a garment got its name.  A British etymologist and writer, postulated that the “john” in the item of apparel may be a reference to the late 19^th Century famous heavyweight boxer, John L. Sullivan, who wore a similar-looking garment in the ring. This explanation, however, is uncertain and the word’s origin is ultimately unknown.    

            So, there you have our handsome cowboy dressed from head to toe!

            Happy Trails To You!

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The Little Snake River Valley by Zina Abbott

I first heard of Baggs, Wyoming, when my husband went there for a deer hunting trip. He actually has been there twice, both times well over a decade ago. It was in the years before smartphones with cameras, and before I started writing American historical romance. He described the area as remote and full of alfalfa fields that drew deer to the area. I used an image of the “hay” fields in this region for my header.

When I researched the Rawlins, Carbon County, Wyoming Territory, area for another of my books, Mail Order Blythe, I came across a reference to the stagecoach service that ran between Rawlins and Baggs. After a little preliminary research which included the Muddy Creek, where Thomas Edison spent time hunting after he watched the 1878 total eclipse in Rawlins, I knew I wanted to set one of my romances in Baggs or, as I quickly figured out, the Little Snake River Valley region.

The Little Snake River has its headwaters in Colorado. The river tends to “snake” its way across the Colorado-Wyoming border several times. It is a tributary of the Yampa River which, in turns, flows into Green River south of Brown’s Park.

Little Snake River

When I began my research for this novel, I quickly realized there is a dearth of information readily available, particularly for the time in which my novel is set. One source of information was the 1880 census, which was enumerated as Snake River, Carbon County. For the entire valley, it filled about four pages.

Jim Baker Cabin in Savery built 1873

Although the Little Snake River Valley has never been highly populated, starting in about the 1870, three small communities developed: Baggs, Dixon, and Savery. I wrote about one of Savery’s more famous residents, Jim Baker, on a different blog. He and his children moved to Savery where he built his log home in 1873. This house is preserved at the Little Snake River Museum. You will find pictures of other historic buildings for this region on that site, also. I used this building and others as inspiration for Devlin’s home. (He is my hero in A Bride for Devlin.) The picture gallery for Baggs may be found HERE.

Dixon Sawmill, date unknown

The town of Dixon, which was incorporated in 1887, was named for Bob Dixon, who, like Jim Baker, was one of the region’s first white trappers. I do not know how long the community existed before it was incorporated. It is known as the sixth oldest town in Wyoming and the second oldest town in Carbon County. However, in my novel I assumed it existed in 1878. Most of the images of Dixon locations and buildings I found, courtesy of the Little Snake River Museum, appeared to date from a later time than the 1870s. I do know there was a sawmill in Dixon.

Snippet 1872 map showing Washakie and Rawlins

 

A stagecoach ran between Dixon and Wamsutta. The only clue I have that this line was established at a time later than my novel was that Wamsutta, a station on the Union Pacific Railroad line, was originally named Washakie. It was formerly a station on the Overland Stagecoach Line. Because of confusion between Washakie, the railroad stop, and Fort Washakie, Washakie’s name was changed to Wamsutta in 1884.

Perkins boardinghouse next to Perkins Store-Dixon

Baggs Mercantile Co. - Date unknown

There was a Baggs Mercantile Company which I used in the book, but I suspect the building for which I have a picture is from a later time.

1878 solar eclipse map of total darkness

I briefly referred to the 1878 total solar eclipse that could be seen in a narrow corridor that included the high Rocky Mountain regions of Denver, Colorado and Rawlins, Wyoming--some of the few developed areas in the path of totality at that time. A look at the map told me that most of the Little Snake River Valley would also have fallen in the path of totality.

 

A Bride for Devlin, Book 6 in the series The Sheriff’s Mail Order Bride, is currently on pre-order. It will be released on September 10, 2021. To find the book description and purchase link, please CLICK HERE.

 

 

 

 

 

Sources:

 

1880 U.S. Census for Snake River, Carbon County, Wyoming Territory

https://www.steamboatpilot.com/news/tom-ross-a-history-of-baggs-wyo-home-to-outlaws/

https://townofbaggs.com/local/picture-gallery/

http://www.wyomingtalesandtrails.com/butchnm.html

http://www.townofdixon.com/

https://littlesnakerivermuseum.com/historic_buildings

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wamsutter,_Wyoming

 

 

Mercantiles - Hubbubs of the Old West

 

 

I remember as a young girl riding my bike with my best friend to the market only a couple of blocks from my house and choosing a candy bar. I didn't pay much attention to any other items for sale, but I vaguely remember my mother going inside for basic items like cereal, canned soup, and a gallon of milk when we needed it and didn't have time or the need to travel the extra fifteen minutes into the next town where a real grocery store (or two) were located. It was nice to have that convenient store even though it wasn't anything close to the convenience stores of today. We could even fill our cars up with gas there.

The place has since shut down, but as I've written historical western fiction over the past few years, I've realized just how important the mercantile or general store was to a town in the 1800s, and not even to the Old West, though it certainly plays a role in most historical western fiction, but in small towns all across America during the 19th century and into the next. Why were general stores so important? Often, the post office was located inside. Also, people came to hang out or chat, read the newspaper, or maybe play a game of checkers. And since most families lived in outlying areas which lacked decent roads, and more often than not, money was scarce and they only went to the store to buy necessities, "going to town" was a big deal. Even I remember how special shopping with my mother or "going to town" was, because growing up, we only did that sort of thing on Saturdays.

What could you buy at a mercantile or general store in the days of the Old West or just after the Civil War when many farms in the South had been ravaged and there was nothing to eat? Anything and everything, it seems, from your favorite brand of hair pomade to dried beans, live chickens or eggs that a farm wife may have traded in, or pickled herring. Horse tack and whips usually hung from the rafters, and at Christmastime, special toys were included among the proprietor's wares. Penny candy such as peppermint sticks or lemon drops were kept in stock year-round, however.

General stores were the place to go to purchase fabric and other sewing notions. You could also purchase men's hats, coffee kettles and other cookware, soaps and other personal hygiene products, medicines, spices and other staples, and much more. After a while, the Montgomery Ward catalog, followed by the Sears catalog, began to encourage shoppers to order specialty items. This, along with improvements in roads and modes of transportation, led to a decline in general stores. Who knows? Perhaps the invention of the telephone also contributed as people no longer needed to walk or ride into town to speak to one another.

A few general stores still exist today, however. I found this article on the Taste of Home website both interesting and informative. I love the pictures of the old buildings and think it's wonderful they still exist. In the next town over from where I live, and where my father was raised, my grandmother's brother owned a general store. I can't remember how many years he ran the store, but here is a picture of his obituary when he passed away in 1979. The building no longer exists, but what a wonderful place it must have been!

 

 

The mercantile plays a prominent role in some of the books in my Brides of Hope Hollow series. I'm preparing to write book 5, Hope in Her Heart, but I'm also writing a prequel to the series called Abiding Hope about a woman who gets stranded in Hope Hollow, Oregon, while traveling from San Francisco to Seattle. With her money gone, and the clothing she's wearing as her only provisions, the mercantile and its owners, the Watsons, come to the rescue once again. This prequel will be available as a free download when subscribing to my newsletter. I'll share the link to download the story next month. In the meantime, here is a picture of the cover as well as a link to follow where you can put together a jigsaw puzzle. Enjoy!

LIFE IN A SOD HOUSE

By Caroline Clemmons

Researching for the books I write leads me down interesting rabbit holes. I can’t resist learning more about the Old West. Sod homes fascinate me, even as the idea is repugnant. Without trees or stone to build with, settlers had to rely on the only available building material — prairie sod. Sod is the top layer of earth that includes grass, its roots, and the dirt clinging to the roots. Building a sod house might take weeks.

Imagine the moldy scent and the impossibility of preventing bugs and other pests. Yet a sod home is better than living in a covered wagon, a tent, or camping in the elements. Probably.

In 1862 the U.S. Congress passed the Homestead Act. This law permitted any 21-year-old citizen or immigrant with the intention of becoming a citizen to lay claim to 160 acres of land in what was known as the Great American Prairie. People came from all over the world to take advantage of this opportunity. By 1900 over 600,000 claims had been filed.

The homesteaders faced many challenges. Everything about the prairie was extreme. The land was flat and treeless and the sky seemed to go on forever. Can you imagine looking at a tall-grass prairie where the grass sometimes grew to be more than 6 feet tall? It is said that riders on horseback could pick wildflowers without dismounting. Women worried about their children getting hopelessly lost in the grass. I can’t visualize cutting through that grass to build a sod house.

Summer brought endless days of heat, periods of drought, rainstorms, tornadoes, swarms of grasshoppers that could destroy fields of crops, and never-ending wind.

Some things about modern houses are consistent: indoor plumbing, electricity, air-conditioning, central heating, plus windows and doors that seal. This list is of things that are important to me and probably to you. Consider pioneers who moved west and made a home from whatever the land offered.

Paintings of pioneers usually show early settlers living in a log cabin. Growing up, I lived in the high plains of West Texas. Although the plains look flat, there are ravines and canyons carving through them. Cottonwood and other trees grew in varying numbers in the canyons where they had access to water. In general, though, there were no trees for building homes.  

Family in front of their home,

horses and wagon on top

The first Anglos to settle in America’s massive Great Plains would have had to live in tents, covered wagons, or sod houses. I’ve seen sod houses, or soddies, in living history museums like the impressive Ranching Heritage Museum at Texas Tech University in Lubbock. Yet, I’ve never seen a sod home in which someone was living. From what I’ve researched, there were numerous problems. Imagine eating dinner and having a snake drop onto the table.

Let’s suppose you’re a newly arrived settler looking for land. You’d search for a stream or creek and small rolling hills which served as windbreaks. Access to planned railroad lines was also an asset because it made it easier to ship goods and livestock to market. As an immigrant, you might not speak English well enough to discover information about railroads. Once you selected your land, you’d go to the Land Office to make sure no one else had filed on the site and to file your claim.

You’d be told (although you’d probably already know) a requirements for fulfilling the claim was building a dwelling to live in within six months. The land wouldn’t be yours for five years. Choosing the right site for a house was nearly as important as choosing the right claim. Building next to a small hill provided some protection from the constant wind. Being near a stream meant easy access to water, but building too close made flooding a danger.

Texas soddie - I love this photo. 

There are several types of sod houses. Because tents or the top of a covered wagon provided little comfort or shelter from the prairie's wild weather, many settlers began by building dugouts—the fastest choice. A family might dig into the side of a hill so that the hill formed the roof and part of three sides. This type dugout produced a small, dark space that could be made quickly and was warmer and drier than a tent.  Many people then built a sod house right in front of the dugout and used the dugout as another room.

A second soddie type was the half-dugout. A family might excavate down about four feet and build four feet up from that to form the half-dugout. This required support for the roof, a difficult problem to solve. Various solutions involved brush and twigs over cedar poles—which would leak in wet weather. Tin provided a better solution if there was a way to obtain the tin and fasten it to the soddie.    

Less frequently, the entire home could be built of sod bricks, but with all four sides in the open. Again, this presented the problem of support for the roof.

 

Inside with a whitewashed interior

Think about the difficulty of cutting sod. Farmers in the 1800s used mules, oxen or horses, and special plows equipped with curved steel blades to cut through the sod’s tough roots. Supposedly, the roots were so tough that as the plow cut through the sod, a loud tearing sound was created.

Farmers soon learned that they should only cut as much sod as they planned to use in one day. Sod quickly dried, cracked, and crumbled if not used immediately. Most farmers cut sod from the area where they planned to build their house. Doing so provided a flat surface on which to build and helped protect the house from prairie fires. Removing the grass from the area also helped keep insects, snakes, and vermin from burrowing into the house.

Interior of sod house with a window.

Imagine how dark it would be without

that window.

Freshly cut sod bricks were laid root-side up in order for the roots to continue to grow into the brick above it. Over time, the bricks in fact grew together to form a very strong wall. Amazing, isn't it?

Most modern houses in the United States are built straight up and down, with angled roofs, and brick or wooden exterior walls that keep out the rain and other elements. Sod houses, however, required a thick, wide foundation. The walls sloped down on the outside of the house so that as the walls settled, they would not collapse. The top of the house looked smaller than the bottom.

Some soddies were lined with cheesecloth to prevent uninvited guests from literally dropping in. I’ve read tales of people watching bugs crawl inside the cheesecloth. Even if the settlers were tolerant of what shared their home, I suspect there were many events of this type that today’s dwellers would find unbearable. (Like a snake dropping out of the ceiling.)

Folks occasionally whitewashed the inside of the soddie to limit falling dust and brighten the interior. The whitewash was made primarily of slaked lime and chalk. Many people (like me) were allergic to the substance. 

People with allergies probably didn’t last long in that environment. One of the stories from my ancestors includes that of an asthmatic boy who developed pneumonia from the soddie’s interior smells of mold, smoke, and other irritants. His parents had to move him into a tent just outside the sod house. He survived in spite of his illness and the winter weather. Before the next winter, the father built a frame home and united the family under one roof. There's a theory that Laura Ingalls Wilder and her husband were victims of mold.

Weather permitting, you'd likely spend a lot of

time outside the dugout or soddie.

The elaborateness of the sod home varied due to the builders. Some were made of sod formed into precise bricks and constructed into a stable structure. Others were slap-dash to create shelter. I think of sod homes as a product of the American west, but one photo showed a more elaborate sod home in Europe. Other photos indicated poor Dutch and Belgium residents lived in houses made of sod. 

Note the sloping sides for stability.

In spite of my personal bias against them, I have read accounts stating they were cool in summer and snug in winter. Compared to hastily thrown up wooden homes, perhaps they were more comfortable, especially in winter. They were good shelter from the wild prairie weather. The fact that they were basically made of dirt made them virtually fireproof. Walls of many rapidly constructed buildings consisted of only a thin wooden wall with no weatherproofing and poorly crafted joints.  

A friend told of her great-grandmother Jane living in a sod home cut into the side of a rise. While Jane’s sons and husband were working in the field, two bulls got into a fight on the roof. Dust drifted down into the home and she feared the animals would fall through. They didn’t, but that must have been a terrifying event for a woman with two small girls to protect. In fact, being an early settler must have been an ordeal that required grit and resourcefulness every day.

A family in front of their part dugout home.

The requirement for fulfilling the terms of the claim agreement varied for different types of claims. Whether it meant building a structure to live in within six months; raising successful crops and staying for five years; planting a certain number of acres of trees; or purchasing the land from the government - less than 50% of the homesteaders succeeded. Bad weather, illness, an accident, or loneliness could bring a homesteader's dream of land ownership to a bitter end. Those who failed went back home or continued moving west.

I don’t know how you feel, but I’m grateful for my home. The weather outside is hot today, but here at the computer in my office, I’m cool and comfortable. Electricity provides for the climate controlled interior, the computer, and the music playing while I write. Hero brought me a Cherry Dr Pepper in my favorite glass (you see one of the reasons I call him Hero). I positively love writing and reading about the Old West, but I’m glad I live today instead of then.

Sources:

https://amhistory.si.edu/ourstory/activities/sodhouse/more.html

Kansas State Historical Society

Texas State Historical Society

  

Caroline Clemmons is an award winning bestselling author. Her latest release is THEODOSIA, A Proxy Mail-Order Bride, available here from Amazon and enrolled in Kindle Unlimited. Check out her Amazon author page and her website at http://www.carolineclemmons.com Sign up for her newsletter here and receive a FREE western historical romance novella, HAPPY IS THE BRIDE.

 

STRANGE PICKLES: How to Store Food Without a Refrigerator by Marisa Masterson

No pressure canners. No refrigerators. No money to buy expensive canned (tinned) food. 

That was the situation for many pioneer farmwives. Very little cash was available to these families, especially as many settlers saved to put up a multi-room home and buy farming equipment. To put away their cash for these, women resorted to vinegar. They created what seems today to be odd pickles.

Root vegetables like potatoes (which were served at nearly every meal) could be stored in underground cellars. Other vegetables were needed in the winter also, so what couldn't be dried was pickled.

Fish and meat along with vegetables ilke green beans and fruits like peaches would be pickled. Busy women scrounged the areas around their farms to supplement what they could put up for the winter. Apples and gooseberries were examples of what might be found and pickled.

Pickled Cod

One unusual pickle I found in my research was called the mango. This has nothing to do with the tropical fruit. Peaches would be stuffed with a garlic and onion mixture. Then the stuffed fruit would be pickled in vinegar and called oil mangos. (http://www.raggedsoldier.com/food_preservation.pdf)

In researching about this, the recipe that most surprised me used green tomatoes. From The Woman Suffrage Cookbook, this recipe dates back to 1886 in print. It was undoubtedly used before that. 

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Early Western TV Show Theme Songs

 Post by Doris McCraw

writing as Angela Raines

Photo Property of the Author

I've been watching old Western TV shows. Not the later Bonanza's or Lancer's but the early ones. Not only are they fun and a great way to unwind after work and before I start the writing and editing. The thing I noticed and have fun with is the theme songs. Since I enjoy them, I thought some of you might also. And if you are so inclined, you might even watch an episode or two. 

From the Robert Horton show "Shenandoah" sung by Horton himself: Shenandoah. I love how the songs give you a hint at either the show or the main character. For those who don't remember, Horton spent a number of seasons on "Wagon Train". He spent a lot of his life doing musical theater, and it shows in his voice.

Robert Horton

If you'd like to watch an episode: Shenendoah - episode McCauley's Cure

That same theme applies to most of the other shows' theme songs. How many do you remember? 

Some were catchy tunes like "Colt 45": Colt 45 sung by Hal Hopper. This show was one of the Warner Brothers' westerns. The same company that gave us Maverick, Cheyenne, and Lawman.

Wayde Preston - Star of the first season 
of "Colt 45"

Although I believe this was a black & white show, here is a colorized version guest staring a young Leonard Nimoy: Colt 45

Of course, there's "The Rebel" with the theme songs done by none other than Johnny Cash. The show starred Nick Adams, who developed the show along with Andrew J. Fenaday who also wrote the words to the theme song. The Rebel

Nick Adams as Johnny Yuma

If you'd like to watch an episode: The Rebel - The Threat

Who doesn't remember the beginning of "Have Gun Will Travel", but the end credits, oh my! This long-running show starred Richard Boone as the title character- Palladin. The theme song was composed by Richard Boone, Sam Rolfe, and Johnny Western, how also sang the song. On a side note, a friend always thought it interesting that Boone was cast as a 'sexy' man. This former boxer may not have been classically handsome, but oh the aura he projected. Ballad of Paladin

Richard Boone as Palladin

To watch a show with Have Gun Will Travel with Harry Carey Jr.

The song for "Johnny Ringo" was written both music and lyrics, along with singing it by the star Don Durant. Durant had sung with Ray Anthony and his Orchestra before starring in this television show. I always found this show, which I'd seen as a child fascinating. It was like they wanted to give this gunman a happy ending. Johnny Ringo Theme Song

Don Durant

Here is an episode from this show with Tim Considine and Mark Goddard Johnny Ringo - Bound Boy

There are so many songs from those early shows. Which ones do you remember?

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

Author, Speaker, Historian-specializing in
Colorado and Women's History

Angela Raines - author: Telling Stories Where Love & History Meet

Books: Angela Raines Books

Website: Angela Raines - author

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