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Western Articles
Authentic West
Scott Gese

Bodie, California

It started out simple enough, The way many western towns did in the 1800's. With the discovery of gold in California.

Western mining camps popped up wherever a few flakes were found and a couple of tents could be pitched. The Bodie mining camp was no different.

In 1859 W.S. Bodey and a few others discovered gold on the California side of the California / Nevada border, east of the Sierra Nevada mountain range.

The camp was named after him, but an eventual misspelling changed the name forever. As other cities around Bodie became better known, this small mining camp struggled to maintain its foothold in their shadow. That changed in 1876. Read the full article HERE>>

Our Western Heritage

Here's a thought I was pondering the other day.

What if the United States as we know it today didn’t exist?

What if our countries western border was at the banks of the mighty Mississippi river and we never had a western expansion? No California gold rush or great cattle drives from Texas to Kansas. No wagon trains heading west on trails like the Oregon or Santa Fe. No settlers leaving the comfort of their homes and loved ones in the east, braving the unknown to take on a long and rigorous journey risking everything they had including their very lives. All for a new beginning in a land they had only heard of but never seen. What if we didn’t have the American West as we know it today? Read the full story HERE>>

Brownsville, Oregon... Beloved by all who enter

It's early Spring and the cool morning air affirms the last vestige of a late Winter.

The heater in my old truck is on the fritz so I keep the chill off my mind by singing along with a classic western tune that's playing on the radio. Thankfully it still works.

I'm taking the scenic route to Brownsville today. It's a day trip I promised myself almost a month ago.

I love driving these back roads, especially this time of year. The areas rolling hills make for a harmonious contrast to the wide open fields of lush green grass, the beginnings of this years seed crop. Read the full article HERE>>

The Mighty Buffalo

“Oh give me a home where the buffalo roam…”

In case you didn’t already know, that is the opening line to a song written in 1876 by Brewster Higley. The song is called “Home on the range.” It’s the official state song of Kansas and the unofficial anthem of the American West.

The ironic thing about this is that in 1876, when the above words were first penned, This country was in the middle of a mass slaughter of over 30 million American buffalo.

Read more of The Mighty Buffalo here>>

Devil’s Rope

The fabric of our western landscape is now woven together with the tight drawn thread of barbed wire. It has infiltrated our lands like nothing else and has changed our way of life forever. Read more of Devil's Rope here>>

Historic Barns, Our American Heritage

With each passing year the family farm slowly disappears from the American landscape, and with it, so goes one of our most essential and powerful symbols of independence, hard work and tradition, the American barn.

Family farms were once vital centers for community life, and as some would see it, the very heart of our American landscape. At one time the iconic barn could be found on every farm from coast to coast. They were an essential part of the whole operation. Their disappearance is happening before our very eyes so slowly that we hardly notice it’s passing. Read more of Historic Barns here>>