Hawken Rifles The Mountain Mens Choice 1976 Baird

The book has 95 clean pages, bindings and covers tight. On the first blank page O.P. and Great Ref. are printed in pencil. Meaning Out of Print and a Great Reference Book. Book size 8 ½ x 11 x 5/8 inches.

Below I have typed the following: The Introduction from the dustjacket, the Table of contents and Some of the Preface of the book:

Hawken Rifles, The Mountain Man’s Choice by John D. Baird.

Hard cover 8 ½ x 11 inches, now in its second printing. First book ever on the famed rifle of the mountain trappers, widely acclaimed, considered the "Bible" on the Hawken rifle of St. louis. Published in 1968 1st Edition copies are not sought after by collectors.

What the critics say about "Hawken Rifles, The Mt. Man’s Choice.

Maj. R. O. Ackerman, in the Dec. 1968 issue of Shooting Times: "...This is a carefully researched and authoritative reference for the lover of the historic Hawken. It is also enjoyable reading for the person of more general gun interests."

Tommy Bish, in the Dec. 1968 issue of Gunworld: "...The author has collected, shot, closely studied and examined, even built replicas of this famed rifle, so he knows well of wahte he speaks. A real thriller from the first to the last page, this is American history on the frontier. A first edition of this book is bound to gain in value quickly. Being the first truly comprehensive work on the Hawken Rifle, it is a must in the library of any gun collector, student of firearms or historians specializing in Americana."

Ken Warner, in November 1968 issue of Gunfacts: "...the main thing right about the book is the writer’s attitude. He just plain likes Hawken rifles, and makes no bones about it and has had some original thoughts on the subject and has gone to the trouble of checking original sources. He assembled a chronology with over 50 entries extending from 1807 to 1919 that is probably, for the Hawken collector, worth the price of the book all by itself."

The Hawken shop of St. Louis built rifles for the mountain men, those intrepid beaver trappers who, during a brief chapter in our nations’s history, opened up the entire western portion of the nation. The National Association of Primitive Riflemen is dedicated to keeping that heritage alive, through their modern-day activities as primitive muzzle loading enthusiasts. The author of this book, John D. Baird, is now publishing a monthly magazine. The Buckskin Report, that is the journal of the NAPR.

To Fully understand and appreciate the " Hawken Mountain Rifle.," one must associate it with that era of history in which it gained prominence. The study of history comes in many forms, and one of the most pleasant of these is the reading of those engaging little receptacles of human knowledge called books. We are indebted to those few writers who ventured into the early West, so that they might have first hand knowledge of life on the prairies and in the mountains, and who wrote knowingly and well of their experiences. Those few have made it possible for present generations to have an understanding of the events that preceded and attended the era that gave us the "Mountain Men".

When first contemplating this volume, we did not visualize anything other than a well illustrated text on Hawken rifles. Subsequent thinking has led us to the point where wr feel it is equally as important to discuss the men who made these rifles, some used them, and also to include a few words concerning those intrepid men of letters who came, who saw, and whose books and paintings left future generations their only contact with those turbulent times.

Concerning noted artists like Catlin, Remington, Russell, and Bierstadt, there is nothing we can say that would add one whit to the silent testimonial given by the paintings alone. To see such paintings, as are in the Gilcrease Institute, for instance, is an awe inspiring experience-words do not suffice. To see is to lover - surely something some than just the hand of man was at work, to bring us so close to reality, through paint and brush.

A record of life on the prairie as told by Francis Parkman in his book "Oregon Trail", offers one of the best insights available to us of the atmosphere and character of the Plains. Although containing literary mannerisms that are considered old fashioned today, it brings to life the West as it was before the multitude of people destroyed the very charm that had drawn them. Parkman’s visit, coming as it did in 1846, coincided with important events in the ever evolving West. The legionary rendezvous of the fur brigades were a thing of the past, but there were still plenty of Mountain Men in the country. The Indian tribes were comparatively quiet, it being the lull before the storms, so to speak. The huge numbers of emigrant trains, the destruction of the buffalo herds, the resultant Indian wars were yet to come. In 1846 only a few hardy souls were braving th wilderness to travel to Oregon, the Indian looked upon the whites as the source of goods he hd come to depend on, the buffalo herds were intact, and while the price for beaver was undeniable low, there were many who were certain it could not remain at this ridiculously low price, and was bound to rise. Trappers were hanging on in the mountains, with this hope; their only hope really, since many had no desire to go anywhere else, or do anything but continue the way of life they had been enjoying.

Fresh in the minds of these trappers were the stories of those early days of exploration of virgin territories, in the search for beaver; the dangers, death, and rewards that had been theirs. Embellished by many telling’s around evening camp, or long days in winter lodges, it made fascinating listening to the young, impressionable visitor from the East. Parkman’s early desire to make his life’s work the writing of history prompted his trip West to study first hand the remaining "wild" Indians and their village life. He could not have been anything but a rapt audience, while first hand accounts of battle with Indians, danger and death, lover, anger, or riches came form all sides. Tinged with the superstitions and folklore of the times, spiced with outright lies quite often, nevertheless, a group of Mountain Men swapping stories around a fire invariably held their audience of green horns spellbound.

Although Parkman was plagued by ill health most of his adult life, in his youth he was a great believer in rigorous sports and exercise, and as a result, was quite fit. He, even as a young man, was one of scholarly reserve, but it is significant to note that he was found of wandering in the woods at home with his rifle as his side companion. He was reputed to be a skilled marksman with this rifle, which he had dubbed "Satan". Fresh out of Harvard, with the physical fitness and enthusiasm of his youth, he was to take to the life on the prairies with a verve and spontaneity that was to win him acceptance among those Mountain Men he came into contact with

In preparation for his trip to the West, Parkman had visited with the fur trader Nathaniel Wyeth, lately returned to Massachusetts. He also visited St. Louis in the spring of 1845, a year after his graduation from Harvard. It was at this preliminary trip to St. Louis that arrangements were initiated towards obtaining a guide and equipment for the trip, to be made the following year. One can imagine the excitement with which he walked the streets of St. louis, visiting with Fitzpartick and Pierre Chouteau, watching as workmen graded and bundled packets of furs that had come down river, relishing the odors of fur, leather, guns, traps, harness, sweat, and all the odors of a huge warehouse that had been the focal point of the fur trade in St. Louis since founding of the city.

With the river front landings lined with steamboats, and the hustle and bustle of loading and unloading of cargoes, the piercing whistle of escaping steam, the laughter and son of drunken boat men, loungers, Mountain Men, traders, Indians, gamblers, and all the others who went to make up this hodge-podge crossroads of nations, would serve as a powerful stimulant to this young man’s enthusiasm. No doubt he made it a point to seek out those who had been to the mountains, and questioned all who would give he answers.

With the information garnered from these sources, and from counseling of such men as Fitzpartick and Chouteau, he would have arrived at some intelligent conclusions as to what was needed in the way of arms for the proposed trip. He, no doubt, spent many long hours in the gunshops of Hawken, Hoffman & Campbell, and others, who were making and selling guns for the Western trade. It is on this first trip that he placed an order fo ra St. Louis made rifle to be delivered to him upon his return to St. Louis the following year.

Preface continues in book!!!