Commentary and stories from the towns, farms, and ranches of the modern West
When we think of Western heroes, there’s a slew of them to consider. Men like Kit Carson, Jim Bridger, Juan Bautista de Anza, or Crazy Horse - all were larger life and stand tall in the history of our land. There’s one more to add to that list. He’s an unlikely candidate, a Catholic priest …
Continue reading John Crowley, the Desert Padre
Editor's note: I'heading for North Dakota today, which brought all this up... When I was young, my folks would take us to visit my aunt and uncle on their Ranch in Wyoming. They had a marvelous old house with a steep roof and whitewashed wood siding. It was huge and warm and always filled with …
Williams, Arizona, is a place that has always piqued my interest. It’s high up in the pines, about 30 miles west of Flagstaff. Summers there are mighty pleasant, very different from much of Arizona. Nowadays it’s a tourist town, famous for being the southern entrance to the Grand Canyon and the last stretch of Route …
One of the most effective lawmen of the old west wasn’t Wyatt Earp or Wild Bill Hickok. It’s a Federal Marshall who worked out of Judge Parker’s court in Fort Smith, Arkansas. His job was hunting outlaws in the 75,000 square miles of Indian Territory - what is now the state of Oklahoma. This …
Do you remember sheepherder wagons? I recall seeing them off in the distance, out on the prairie, in those Wyoming hills west of Cheyenne. They were found on open range around the west, on land where cows don’t do well but sheep thrive. That sheep wagon, with its white canvas top, was a beacon in …
