Cowboy Trivia
Bang-up meant first rate.
Pistols were barking irons or barkers.
Coffee was called brown gargle.
By gum was a harmless oath popular among cowboys.
Jesse Chisholm, a trader, plotted out the Chisholm Trail in 1865. Besides English, he spoke thirteen tribal languages and Spanish, and helped many settlers and Indian tribes reach treaties.
Charlie Goodnight invented the chuck wagon.
Cow tenders were cowhands.
A hard and dangerous man was called a curly wolf.
The drag rider was the worst position to have, as that rider rode behind the cattle and in their dust.
Eating utensils were called eatin' irons.
The flank rider was the rider who rode near the back of a herd or cattle.
Jack rabbits can run up to forty-five miles an hour.
A fly was a rolled up canvas awning secured to the chuck box on the chuck wagon that could be rolled out if it rained.
Fort Stockton originated as Camp Stockton in 1858.The 1st and 8th Infantry protected travelers from San Antonio that were headed to California and Mexico. In 1867 the camp became a fort and had about thirty-five buildings. In 1886 it was abandoned. The town still has historic sites to visit today.
Some of the first breeding Herefords were introduced in Texas in 1876.
Hurdy Gurdy girls would dance with men for a dollar or so a dance, which they split with the saloon or building owner. They also got a commission on the number of drinks they sold. Sometimes the girls would dance up to fifty dances a night. Each dance lasting five, ten or fifteen minutes.
John 'Liver-eating' Johnston was a sheriff--or deputy sheriff depending on the research site--in Coulson from 1881-1882. He's a fascinating character and would be worth your time to Google, if you're interested.
There really was a Long Branch Saloon in Dodge City and it still exists today.
A point rider was the rider who rode near the front of the herd.
Petroleum jelly was referred to as rod wax.
A remuda is a herd of ranch horses that the cowboys select their mounts from. On a roundup a cowboy may change out his horse several times a day.
Sam Hill was cowboy slang--or a mild oath--for hell or the devil.
Savvy was a word used for acumen.
A sidewinder was an evil man, a snake in the grass.
Ever wondered about swinging saloon doors? Why they had them? How they locked up? Not all saloons had them but the ones that sported swinging doors did so for ventilation purposes and to make it easier for the cowboys hauling heavy saddle bags around to get in and out of the building. As far as locking up, there was a standard door on the outside that could be closed and locked at close-up time.
Texas Toothpicks were folding knives developed and crafted by Roy Jones in the mid-1800s.
Tom Smith was Abilene's first marshal and was known as the 'no gun marshal' because of his ban on guns.
The trail boss was responsible for every aspect of the trail drive, the cattle and the men.
Cowboys of the time wore vests because they had six to eight pockets and their shirts had one or none. Not to mention their pants pockets were to hard to get to while riding in the saddle. The vest pockets were used for their smokes, matches, pocketknives and other necessities.
Vittles or victuals refers to food.
People in the old west used willow bark for pain and fever. Willow bark contains salicin which acts like aspirin. The bark could be chewed on or made into a tea.
When on a trail drive, after the meal, cowboys would scrape their plates and put them in the wreck pan.
The term zitted was used much the same as we use sped or zipped today.
