He Range Men

The Range Men

Journalist Leroy Victor Kelly's "The Range Men" chronicles the early days of ranching in southwestern Alberta, from the arrival of the first large herds in 1876 through to 1913. Kelly gathered material from the records of the North-West Mounted Police, William Pearce's government reports, "the Calgary Herald," "the Macleod Gazette" and other publications, and collected anecdotes from old-time stockmen such as George Lane and John Ware. A window into the period after the buffalo but before extensive settlement, "The Range Men" paints a vivid, engrossing and sometimes unflattering picture of colonial life and attitudes. Kelly's unvarnished account of the relentless march of 'progress, ' as settlements were built and big ranches like the Cochrane, the Medicine Hat and the Bar U were born, notes the impact of farming on the wild prairie ecology and documents treaty betrayals and efforts to reduce and 'subdue' First Nations through smallpox and rum. More than a story of cattle trades and the hard beginnings of the Alberta cowboy, "The Range Men" is an authentic and important slice of history.

The range men

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