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ELMER
POPE
Guest
Writer
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Smoke Signals
Nov./Dec. '10
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This is an exciting
time in good literature that fits into our time frame of 1750 - 1843. I
was asked to start this column by our leaders in command, hey that's what
Howdy said ! So here goes with a
few book reviews. I'm going to take advantage of what others have written
rather than stumble around and fail being the first attempt. Here we go
folks with "Rocky Mountain Tough" by our Captain Bill
Cunningham.
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Rocky
Mountain Tough
By:
Bill Cunningham
The
mountain man of the 1800s fought the elements, the
unexpected, and the Indians. A careless moment, a
wrong decision, and he could lose his furs, his
plunder, his hair. . . Today’s buckskinner faces a
more cunning, vicious foe—special interests want
his land. For Maxwell Stacey, it may mean his
plunder, his woman, even his life; the men chasing
him have the finest modern guns and equipment money
can buy. Max has only his flintlock rifle, his
horses, and some fine honed survival skills from the
fur trade period.
Check
out this series of books, you'll find yourself
really getting involved with the characters and the
events they find themselves in. Good read folks.
EP |
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HEROES
TO ME
This
is a collection of articles that our own Mike Moore, staff
writer on the western fur trade for On The Trail
magazine, has written for that magazine and others.
It took over five years to do the research and
compile the chapters. You may have seen an article
by him in some of the following magazines:
Backwoodsman,
Tomahawk and Long Rifle, Muzzle Blasts, Poke and
Stroke and
On The Trail & NAF Smoke Signals.
This
184-page paperback is an overview of the fur trade
and the people who came west during that time. The
chapters cover often overlooked areas and will let
you see what the people who were there said about
the topics. Heroes to Me has many references
that give you a different view of the early west
than is found in most writing today.
EP
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This review appeared in
"Muzzleloader" magazine Nov/Dec 2005 issue
reviewed by
Mike Nesbitt
EP
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SUCCESS
IN THE NORTH AMERICAN FUR TRADE
The
title of this book suggests that it is all about a
successful business venture and, in fact, it really
is. But
more specifically it is about the success of just
one item which was born during the early part of the
fur trade years and used for many years after that,
this single item is the Northwest Gun.
This book, written by Barry “Buck”
Conner, in a real big way continues where Charles
Hanson’s book The
Northwest Gun left off.
In
fact, this new book falls back at times to include
some of the information and original
photographs that were in The Northwest Gun, supplied
by Mr. Hanson.
This isn’t done in a “copying” way at
all and some of the letters and conversations
between the author and Charles Hanson are also
included in this new book.
In addition to that, all of the information
in this new book expands or adds to the facts that
were previously written.
Success
In The North American Fur Trade is a book divided
into 19 chapters. It is not a book that a person
will normally read from cover to cover, this book is
full of facts and typically a reader will look up
the points that are interesting at the moment and go
to that particular chapter or pages. Both Charley
and Curly felt this should be a research book rather
than another book on an old weapon.
Included near the end of the book is a chapter about
“Planning A NW Gun” which goes into today’s
sources of parts, kits, guns “in the white” or
complete guns.
There isn’t any area where this new book is
found lacking.
MN
Nov/Dec
2005
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How's that for a first
for the North American Frontiersmen's "Book Review" column.
___________________________
NOTE
Most will have to agree
that our officers that are stepping down have done a "bang-up
job" with their continued efforts in moving this association forward.
Thank you guys your leadership will be missed.
I
remain, Yr Svt.
Elmer
Pope
I'm
the original Elmer (damnit).
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