style number: 7902
$55.00
The most comprehensive biography of Jefferson Randolph "Soapy" Smith ever written. An extraordinary confidence man, gambler, and all-around bad man is set against the carefully researched historical times of the evolving Old West. Author and great-grandson Jeff Smith spent 25 years researching and writing the life and murderous death of one of the West's most infamous, and some say often unfairly maligned, masters of the criminal arts and natural-born leaders of men. Was Soapy Smith a "good man"? This history points to Sometimes. Was he a "bad man"? Without doubt, Often. In this book, from Georgia to Texas, from Denver and the silver and gold boomtowns of Colorado, to Mexico and the Western states to the great Northwest, and to the last frontier, Alaska, you will travel with Soapy Smith to his criminal empires and final bold, deadly showdown with vigilantes.
660 pages, Soft Bound 54 photographs (most never before published). Many never before published personal and business letters and documents. Many new facts and stories never before published.
This biography of Jefferson Randolph Smith II, Alias Soapy, is written by a great-grandson of the subject, Jeff Smith. After his 24 years of research and writing, it is hard to imagine a more comprehensive biography of Soapy Smith ever being published. The 660 pages, 54 images, and 28-page, double-column index make it a big, accessible book.
The biography begins in pre-revolutionary America, traces the family to Georgia, and follows its subject from birth (November 2, 1860) to death (July 8, 1898). In between is chronicled a remarkable life of opposites—of high ability yet great hardship, of criminality and lawfulness, of sleight of hand and fair dealing, of ruthless human exploitation and uncommon charity, and of good fortune and bad luck, ending in no luck, bold pluck, and violent death.
In his teens and early twenties, Soapy Smith ranged the West, learning to master men and crowds and perfecting illusion in the service of fraud. In about 1888, at age 28, he settled in Denver and became a major figure there until 1895. After “burning all his bridges” one wild night in 1894, he was on the move again, to Mexico, St. Louis, Houston, San Francisco, and Spokane. From the Northwest in 1896, he explored prospects in Alaska, stopping in Juneau long enough to be arrested for auctioning his famous soap. Soapy continued north to Homer, up Cook Inlet to Hope and Sunrise on Turnagain Arm, and then back, not without adventure, to Seattle and Spokane.
Shortly after the steamer Portland docked in Seattle on July 17, 1897, with its fabulously rich miners, Soapy arrived in Skagway on August 22. Less than a year later, he was shot dead on Skagway’s Juneau Wharf. Frank Reid was credited with the deed and hailed as a hero. Reid did shoot it out with Soapy, but biographer Jeff Smith’s research has led to a large block of evidence indicating that another man fired the fatal bullet. This evidence includes two official reports filed by Colonel Sam Steele of the North West Mounted Police, published between book covers for the first time.
The Alaska chapters contain the most sustained period of intense and dramatic activity in Soapy’s thirty-seven and a half years. In Skagway his name was legendary before his death and remains so over 111 years later. Many stories told about Soapy are probably true, but more than a few probably are not. Every story known about Soapy Smith is found in this book and its veracity evaluated. Nothing has been whitewashed or withheld. Bad is bad, and the bad predominates, but there is also a surprising amount of documented good. In his research and development, Jeff thrashed everything, let the wind take the chaff, and heaped all the wheat into his big book.
The focus of this biography is Soapy Smith, a fascinating figure, and his backdrop is U.S. history, particularly as it concerns the evolving Old West (especially Colorado) and the Last Frontier, Alaska. Many of the events, organizations, movements, and people who were part of the historical fabric of Soapy’s time also appear, making for a large and rich tapestry.
~Art Petersen, publisher
$14.95
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$17.00
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The All-American Cowboy Grill
Sizzlin' Recipes from the World's Greatest Cowboys
Authors: Cheryl Rogers-Barnett, Ken Beck and Jim Clark
Publisher: Rutledge Hill Press, 2004
Hardback, comb bound.
B&W photos, 225 pp.
1-Available
From the Publisher:
The All-American Cowboy Grill blazes a new trail through the Old West as it partners 200 savory recipes from American cowboys and cowgirls of movie, TV, rodeo, and music fame with 100 photos and sidebars of related interest.
Riding shotgun with the recipes of the celebrities are mouth-watering recipes rustled up by cooks from some of the top real-life ranches of the western United States.
This time around the call to "come and get it!" has the cooks focusing on recipes for the home and patio grill. The bulk of the recipes feature entrees, the star of the grill, but those recipes are complemented with a variety of other dishes that can be prepared on the grill, including vegetables, breads, and desserts, and an assortment of foods that accompany a grilled supper such as cool, cool beverages and side dishes.
The book has short sidebars with real western history as well as western pop culture trivia from the movies and TV. There are short articles on famous western tourist and museum sites. Here is an example of the fun, extra material that makes this cookbook such good reading, along with Roy Rogers' recipe for the best Corn on the Cob.
About the Authors:
Cheryl Rogers-Barnett, daughter of Roy Rogers and Dale Evans, grew up in the San Fernando Valley where Trigger was her pet. Today, she and her husband, Larry, travel the United States in their RV making appearances at major western film and music festivals. She is the author of Cowboy Princess.
Ken Beck and Jim Clark are free lance writers who have written numerous books, including Aunt Bee's Mayberry Cookbook and The All-American Cowboy Cookbook. Ken is an editor for The Tennessean and lives in Watertown, Tennessee. Jim is founder of the Andy Griffin Show Rerun Watcher's Club and lives in Nashville.
$6.95
Part of the HERO COLLECTION, 20% of the purchase price of this item is donated to this month's selected charity. Thank you for being a HERO!
Historic Cookery
Author Fabiola C. Gilbert
Paperback. 43 pages. Index.
Suggested Menus
Size: 5.5" x 8.5" x .125"
3 Available for Immediate Shipping
From the Publisher:
When Historic Cookery first appeared in 1931 it may have been the earliest cookbook of New Mexican foods to be published, with heirloom recipes from the author's own family and others collected from villagers in northern New Mexico. Fabiola Cabeza de Baca Gilbert's cookbook has been credited with the popularization of cooking with chile that led directly to America's love of native New Mexican foods.
In traditional recipes there were no set rules for the preparation of food. The cook was expected to learn the recipes from her relatives. One of the great contributions of Historic Cookery is that for the first time the non-native cook was given exact amounts and measures for the preparation of New Mexican food.
The author gives complete recipes for chile sauces, corn dishes, meats, cheese, eggs, and vegetables as well as salads, soups, breads, desserts, and beverages.
Fabiola Cabeza de Baca Gilbert was born near Las Vegas, New Mexico in 1894. She was a noted educatior, writer, and home economist.