Rattlesnakes and ornery horses, the dreaded Texas Itch, midnight rambles in graveyards, trips to Mexico, and hard riding on the last open range: George Philip recounts all these adventures and more with wit and humour. George Phillip arrived in South Dakota from Scotland in 1899. For the next four years, he rode as a cowboy for his uncle's L-7 cattle outfit during the heyday of the last open range. But the cowboy era was a brief one, and in 1903 Philip turned in his string of horses and hung up his saddle to enter law school in Michigan. In these candid letters, Philip provides fascinating insights into the development of the West and of South Dakota. His writing details the cowboy's day-to-day work, from branding and roping to navigating across the palins by stars and buttes, as the great open ranges slowly closed up.

From nuggets of sage advice--"Never approach a bull from the front, a horse from the rear, or a fool from any direction"--to campfire fare, Morris presents the truth about America's most enduring and intriguing "life-style". Features lists of the best rodeos, dude ranches, trail rides, and festivals. 67 photos. 51 line drawings.

"I've known about Ike Blasingame all my life, knew many of his fellow punchers, white and Indian. Ike was certainly a salty representative of the Texas bronc twister when he came North with that most romantic of cow outfits, the British-owned Matador. . . . [He] takes the reader across the treacherous Missouri River as the spring-softened ice goes out under the horses' feet, into the still wild cow towns, through the round-ups, the prairie fires. . . . There is the authentic smell and feel of the Northern cow country of fifty years ago in the story Ike Blasingame tells."-Mari Sandoz"Here is one of the most gripping Western tales since Andy Adams' The Log of a Cowboy was published in 1903. The telling is considerably like Adams'-warm, human, flavorful. The author, a one-time Matador ranch cowboy, . . . lived his story, and he tells it straight in the language of the cow country without contrivance."-New York Times"Many of the cowboys who have written about their experiences never really looked at any wider segment of the cattle business than was visible between their horses' ears, but Ike Blasingame did. He paints a big picture without omitting details."-New York Herald-Tribune

Celebrity host of CMT's Cowboy U Rocco Wachman's modern guide to being a cowboy Cowboy: The Ultimate Guide to Living Like a Great American Icon is the first book to explore, through a pop-culture lens, the many facets of the cowboy life. This book entertains and educates with an insider's look at topics such as ranching, rodeos, chuck wagon cooking, cowboy music, country and western dancing, and most important, the cowboy spirit. Cowboy includes instructions, recipes, profiles, photographs, and trivia that vividly depict the day-in, day-out rituals of this iconic lifestyle and show what it meant to be a cowboy in frontier days, and what it means to be a cowboy today! A fresh take on all things cowboy, Cowboy is certain to appeal to the huge fan base of those who love all things Western.

Traces the history of the cattle industry from its beginning in Mexico to the present.

Readers recognize the cowboy as a symbol of the Wild West, but this book illustrates what life was like for real cowboys. Readers will learn about the Spanish origins of cowboys, as well as the rise of America’s cattle industry. This book also describes cattle drives and the famous trails ridden by real cowboys. Vivid visuals are paired with engaging text to deliver an adventurous reading experience. This high-interest book is supplemented by sidebars and “Truth or Myth?” fact boxes to deepen the reader’s understanding of this iconic figure in the Wild West.

Based on research conducted for the Canadian Museum of Civilization exhibition Legends of Our Times: Native Ranching and Rodeo Life on the Plains and Plateaus, this volume describes the many aspects of Native cowboy culture, including the spiritual and cultural dimensions, ranching life, and rodeo and associated entertainment. Abundantly illustrated with superb historical and contemporary photographs. Distributed by University of Washington Press. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Published for devotees of the cowboy and the West, American Cowboy covers all aspects of the Western lifestyle, delivering the best in entertainment, personalities, travel, rodeo action, human interest, art, poetry, fashion, food, horsemanship, history, and every other facet of Western culture. With stunning photography and you-are-there reportage, American Cowboy immerses readers in the cowboy life and the magic that is the great American West.

The legendary James Kenney recalls some of his greatest adventures as a teen-age cowboy on the Southwestern ranches of the 1930s.