After spring roundups, cowboys herded their cattle out on the trail, heading to a cowtown with a railroad station where the cattle could be...
Cowboy Grub
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Sherry Monahan
River Captain’s Hotel
The Port of Jefferson’s first steamboat captain opened Texas’s second oldest, continuously operating hotel, the Excelsior. William Perry, a...
California Raisins
Since raisins are nothing more than dried grapes, they came from wine-producing regions. In the early 1800s, they were largely imported from Spain....
California Raisins
Since raisins are nothing more than dried grapes, they came from wine-producing regions. In the early 1800s, they were largely imported from Spain....
Sitting Duck
In just one short year, the Brown Palace had become one of the leading hotels in the frontier West. Its reputation was such that, in September 1893,...
Milkshake Mix-Up
The milkshake as we know it today, an ice cream drink, was created between 1911 and 1922, spun into a wholesome and delicious form by newly invented...
The Bitter Truth
I get hoarse after eating strong horseradish, but Henry Scammell felt otherwise. “Horseradish will afford instantaneous relief in most obstinate...
Every Dog Has its Day
Mark Twain’s critical view of the exotic coconut tree, which he described as a “feather-duster struck by lightning,” didn’t keep American pioneers...
Western Writers of America President Sherry Monahan Shares Her Love of Books
Sherry Monahan admits she didn’t read her first Western until she was in her thirties—she was hooked on Agatha Christie. A native of New Jersey, she...
The Bacon Cure
On his way from Illinois to California in 1852, William Henry Hart wrote, “The bacon too that I had always disliked even the sight of, became very...
A Dangerous Eggnog
The hens only lay egg-nog at Christmas-tide, but egg-nog will lay a man any time he tackles it,” reported the Idaho Avalanche on January 3, 1880. In...
Lobsters on the Frontier
Lobster salad, prepared by an inexperienced person who does not know what to exclude, is almost as dangerous as an unloaded gun in the hands of a...