COWBOYS & PISTOLS
We’re going to add another element to the posts on Cowboy to Cowboy. And that is “Old West Myth and Fact.” As with anything that has happened in the past, even my exploits, when time gets between the event and the present, a lot of myth begins t
o surround the fact. And this is very true with the Old West.
So, we’re going to look at things that we accept as fact and see if it truly was fact. We’re asking you to put in your two cents, because we could be wrong. The desire is to discover the truth about how it really happened.
The first topic we’ll cover is cowboys and pistols. From everything I’ve been able to discover cowboys normally didn’t carry pistols. First, anytime they were working cattle, the pistol would get in the way. On a cattle drive a long gun was much more practical. Any pistols stayed in the chuck wagon.
Many a cowboy never buckled on a six-shooter because gunmen normally never bothered a man without a gun, and a man without a gun sure wasn’t going to bother a man with one.
In addition, most western towns wouldn’t allow guns to be carried within the city limits.
What do you say?
Filed under: Old West Myth & Fact
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I think part of the confusion is about how sidearms were carried. Far too many modern folks have the idea that low slung “buscadero” style holsters were the thing. The butt of the gun at hip level or lower. A man riding a horse usually carried his gun high on the waist, with the butt more in line with the small of the back.
Gun gets in the way of work, true. That said, I’ve certainly carried a gun working horseback or in the jeep, particularly in the back country, still do. Town too on occasion, Colorado is open carry and many small towns don’t have local regulation.
Snakes, signals and safety were good reasons to be armed in the old days and still are today. Long guns on the saddle are are OK but if you not with your horse, you’re not with your gun. Time and place dictated a lot of the decisions about how to be armed. If there was any question, I’d bet most (non-town dwelling) old timers carried a personal piece whatever the activity. The further back in time; the more likely the individual carried a personal arm more often. – Doc
i have to agree totally with doc, my additon would be that most were carried in handmade holsters , and not only leather as in anything that could be made in to a carry devise, many where just stuffed under a belt or saddle bag . And if i see one more high polished chrome pearl handled colt in the movies , i think ill scream, hahaha i really get a kick out of that.
We published an article from an 1800’s newspaper about a man who carried his pistol stuffed in his pants. The pistol kept slipping down his pants, so he opened the gate on the pistol. He got in a gun fight and when he pulled his pistol, with the open gate, a cartridge partially slipped out and froze the cylinder. Fortunately, he was able to push the cartridge back in; close the gate; and shoot his opponent.
One wonders how many times a person ended up dead by doing that trick.
I have to fall back on the writing of Elmer Keith, who is acknowledged as one who knew the Cowboy era, what was done, and what was not.
The following is from what I remember reading in his excellent work, “Sixguns by Keith.”
A horseman generally did carry a sidearm and Keith gave a good discussion on how — and how not — and the biggest reason a cowboy actually did carry a pistol, was to shoot his horse.
He gave a good example, and from his own experience.
Let’s suppose your horse shies at a shadow or a popped-up prairie dog or something of the sort, and let’s say the horse rears and let’s say the cowboy loses his seat.
Unless he can kick free of the stirrups, he might hang up in the stirrups.
Now we have a panicked, running horse, with something dragging along behind it.
The horse is going to run harder and kick at whatever’s dragging along.
Elmer Keith recounted how he had to shoot his horse in such a moment, to keep from being dragged to death.
I’m not 100% certain which of the early cattle barons it was (at my age that’s not unusual) but I think it was Charlie Goodnight that would fire a man for swearing, playing cards, or carrying a gun. His reasoning was that the men were there to work, not fight, and nothing could start a fight any quicker than those three things. It is also a fact that unless he was inside of it the average working cowboy probably couldn’t hit the side of a barn with a handgun. for the most part a handgun was pretty much useless beyond about 10 or 15 feet. It takes a lot of constant practice for anyone to be very accurate at much beyond that distance. Also, in the late 1800s cartriges (44 or 45 cal.)cost $0.70 for a box of 50 and a working cowboy had neither the time nor the money to do the amount of practicing it takes.
Lee, I’m not quite as old as you are…but, then is anyone. However, I believe you’re correct about Charlie Goodnight and his regulations.
I also believe, if he didn’t have one, a rancher would supply a cowboy with a long gun, but never a pistol.