The Range Men. The Story Of The Ranchers And Indians Of Alberta.

L. V. KELLY

Other works by L. V. KELLY

Publication: William Briggs, 1913, Toronto

First edition. Pictorial cloth, 468 pp., gilt top, other edges untrimmed, 23.5 x 16.5 cm., preface, frontispiece [portrait], teg., remaining edges uncut, 41 illustrations, plates, portrait. Discrete professional restoration to the spine, ink stamp of "Cumber Farm" on front fly leaf, else a near fine, bright, tight copy without the usual loss to the white portion of the cover decoration. One of the most difficult to obtain of cattle books. Kelly draws upon reports of the North-West Mounted Police, government records, the Calgary Herald and Macleod Gazette, as well as the recollections of early stockmen to document the ranches, cattle operations, men and events that shaped the development of the Alberta range. Offers the history of the men who built the cattle industry ... recounting their hardships, personalities, conflicts, successes, and failures. His subjects include many of the pioneer ranchers and cattlemen of southern Alberta, making the work an important primary source for the history of the Canadian cattle frontier. Also provides material on the Indigenous peoples of the region, frontier communities, cattle trails, and the transformation of the open range into an established ranching industry. Six Score 65 says, "Certainly the most important work on ranching in western Canada. The period from 1876, when the large herds began to come to Alberta, to 1913, when the book was published, is covered in great detail. One of the cornerstone works on early Canadian ranching with much on the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the early ranchers of Alberta. This book and John Craig's are the two best books on Canadian ranching." Herd 1267 says, "Very scarce." Howes K66 says, "Though chiefly an account of the cattle trade in the Canadian prairie provinces, includes Montana affairs." An exceptional copy of a difficult book to obtain.

Inventory Number: 39603