Description: THE BUFFALO HUNTERS Charles M. Robinson III This book offers valuable history and insight into the days of yesteryear when buffalo covered the Plains and the Buffalo Hunter was born. It is of special interest to black powder cartridge rifle shooters such as Sharps and Remington Rolling Block rifle enthusiasts. ***** The near extinction of the North American buffalo, which in 1850 covered the mid-western plains by countless millions, is one of the most exciting yet tragic stories of American history. Charles M. Robinson III dramatically relates this tale with both a vivid, brilliantly researched text and with evocative photographs and illustrations. From the 18th century French fur traders, through the American industrial revolution with its demand for leather, and ending with the final sad hunts of the mid-1880s, Robinson eloquently and graphically describes all aspects of the hunt and the hunters, including the Indians for whom the destruction of their subsistence resulted in their own destruction. Here are the hunters such as Custer, Cody, and the Mooars, and the rough and tumble towns that hides built—Adobe Walls, Buffalo Gap, Dodge City, and Fort Griffin. Battles, such as the Battle of Adobe Walls, and the weapons that won them, such as the Sharps .50-caliber---the gun that "shoots today and kills tomorrow"---are given detailed attention. Simple to operate, deadly and powerful, the Sharps became THE buffalo gun. Excerpt from the book- "Although the factory load on the heavier models was .50-90, hunters loaded their own shells, adding as much as twenty grains of powder to increase it to .50-110. With continuous firing the guns overheated and, if not cooled, the inside of the barrel would burn out. Since a Sharps cost as much as $120, after ruining some of the expensive rifles the hunters learned to pour water on the barrels or run a wet rag through them after every second or third shot. Even so, the hot barrels expanded and allowed gas to escape when they were fired, cutting down on range and accuracy. Mooar solved this problem by ..." "Loading one's own shells gave each hunter a weapon with a distinctive sound," Robinson writes in the book. "A hunter well-acquainted with his fellows could generally tell who was in the vicinity simply by listening to the sounds of the rifles. The distinctive 'crack' of a repeating rifle amid the booming of the Sharps was a warning--Indians used repeaters and the sound of one almost invariably meant that someone was under attack. Indians were a constant threat during the early days of the hunt. Occasionally a hunter's body would be found, scalped and horribly tortured to death. On the theory that Indians never scalped a dead man, many hunters carried what they called, 'a poison vial,' a glass tube filled with powdered hydrocyanic acid inside a shell casing and closed with a slightly larger caliber shell casing. Faced with capture by Indians, a hunter took apart the shell casings and bit down on the vial. Death was quick and painless." A wealth of photographs, including rare reproductions of the long-lost glass plates of photographer George Robertson taken during an 1874 hunt and the photographs of L.A. Huffman in the early 1880s, illustrate this exciting volume of Western Americana. ". . . a beautiful volume which belongs in every library of one who loves the Old West."—Quarterly of the National Association for Outlaw and Lawman History Table of Contents: 1. THE LIFEBLOOD OF THE PLAINS Photoessay: An Inexhaustible Commissary on Hooves 2. FROM VOYAGEURS TO BUFFALO BILL Photoessay: The de rigueur Feature of a Western Trip 3. THE HUNT BECOMES INDUSTRIALIZED Photoessay: Deadly Tools of the Hunter's Trade 4. THE INDIANS STRIKE BACK Photoessay: A Desperate Stand at a Lonely Outpost 5. THE SLAUGHTER MOVES SOUTH Photoessay: The Hard Life of a Brutal Profession 6. THE TOWN THAT HIDES BUILT Photoessay: Rip-Roarin' Centers of the Buffalo Trade 7. THE LAST HUNTS Photoessay: The Buffalos' Last Stand Softcover. 8 1/2x11. 178 pages. Unabridged edition. 74 black and white photos. BRAND NEW! PLEASE NOTE: PHOTO IN THIS AUCTION IS A STOCK PHOTO OF THE BOOK. YOUR BOOK IS BRAND NEW FROM THE PUBLISHER, NEVER READ, NEVER SHELVED. We ship all of our books in cardboard packaging/wrapping for protection in transit.
Price: 20.66 USD
Location: Houston, Texas
End Time: 2024-11-13T00:55:00.000Z
Shipping Cost: 4.79 USD
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Restocking Fee: No
Return shipping will be paid by: Buyer
All returns accepted: Returns Accepted
Item must be returned within: 14 Days
Refund will be given as: Money back or replacement (buyer's choice)
Modified Item: No
Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
Custom Bundle: No
shiloh .45-70 .45-90 .45-110 .50 .44-70: .44-90 badger barrel tang sight bpcr
Load Type: Breachloader
Gun Type: Rifle
Type: cartridge
Brand: sharps Remington ROLLING BLOCK
