This morning I was thinking about food. Okay, I think about food every morning, that's why I'm not saddle weight anymore, but this morning, as I grabbed the eggs out of my beautiful stainless steel refrigerator and walked to my beautiful stainless steel cook top stove to make an omelet, I again wondered about the "old days." How did a trail drive years ago feed all those hungry men? The movies always had a crusty old codger cooking for the cowboys out on the trail. His wagon jiggled and squeaked as it followed the herd in a plume of dust and grime. You know why it rode behind them in the dust? I do. It was so that if the herd stampeded, it wouldn't run over the wagon and wipe out all their supplies. See...hangin' around with cowboys makes you smarter. But back to the chuck wagon. Here's a quote from a neat website that details the history of chuck wagons. I've listed the link below so you can check it out, they also have some wonderful old pictures.
"During the long trail drives, the chuck wagon was the headquarters of every cattle outfit on the range. The cowboys didn't just eat their meals there; it was their social center and recreational spot. – a natural gathering place for exchanging "windies," or tall tales, listening to music if their happened to be a musician in the group, or just recounting the experiences of the day."
Now go fix your breakfast and enjoy the day!
When I was a young girl, I loved watching westerns on TV. That's about all their was in the 1950's! I'd watch them with my dad mostly. You name 'em, I watched 'em. I had a crush on just about every cowboy, too...depending on the story of the week! I particularly was in love with young Clint Eastwood as Rowdy Yates in Rawhide! AND I loved the funny guy who did the cooking, but don't remember his name!
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