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A Texas Matchmaker
“The country was as large as the men were daring, and there was elbow room for all and to spare.”- Andy Adams, A Texas Matchmaker
A Texas Matchmaker by Andy Adams is the tale of Texas cowboys, based on Andy Adams’s own experience. It is an interesting log of how the west once used to be.
235 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1904
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39 people want to read
About the author
Andy Adams
223 books22 followersAndy Adams (1859–1935) was born to pioneer parents in Indiana, worked in Texas for ten years driving cattle, and settled in Colorado Springs, where he began writing his "real" stories of cowboys in the West.
While still in his teens, Adams ran away from home. He eventually made his way to Texas, where he found work as a cowboy. From 1882 to 1893, Adams witnessed firsthand the golden era of the Texas cattle industry, a time when the cowboys ran cattle on vast open ranges still relatively unrestricted by barbed wire fences. In 1883, he made the first of many cattle drives along the famous cattle trails running north from Texas to the cow towns of Kansas. As farmers began to challenge the ranchers for control of the land, Adams witnessed the gradual fencing-in of the cattle country that would eventually end the short age of the open range. He made his last cattle drive in 1889.
In 1893, Adams left Texas for Colorado, attracted by rumors of gold at Cripple Creek. Like most would-be miners, he failed to make a fortune in the business. He eventually settled in Colorado Springs, where he remained for most of his life. While doing on a variety of jobs, Adams began to write stories based on his experiences as a Texas cowboy. In 1903, he found a publisher for his novel The Log of a Cowboy, a thinly disguised autobiography of his life on the plains. A fascinated public welcomed tales from the former cowboy, and Adams wrote and published four similar volumes in less than four years.
Adams distinguished himself from the majority of other western authors of the day with his meticulous accuracy and fidelity to the truth. As its name implied, The Log of a Cowboy was a day-by-day account of a cattle drive Adams had made from Texas to Montana. The book had little plot beyond the progress of the cattle herd toward Montana, and had none of the romantic excitement offered by less literal chroniclers of the West. Adams' self-avowed goal was to make his fiction indistinguishable from fact, and as one commentator has noted, "in this he succeeds only too well."
While a reader searching for a good story might find Adams' books somewhat dull today, historians and writers looking for an accurate depiction of the cowboy life have found them invaluable. Beyond his five best-known books, Adams also wrote two popular novels for juveniles later in his career. When he died in Colorado Springs in 1935, he left a number of unpublished manuscripts of novels, stories, and plays that historians of the Old West have also found useful.
While still in his teens, Adams ran away from home. He eventually made his way to Texas, where he found work as a cowboy. From 1882 to 1893, Adams witnessed firsthand the golden era of the Texas cattle industry, a time when the cowboys ran cattle on vast open ranges still relatively unrestricted by barbed wire fences. In 1883, he made the first of many cattle drives along the famous cattle trails running north from Texas to the cow towns of Kansas. As farmers began to challenge the ranchers for control of the land, Adams witnessed the gradual fencing-in of the cattle country that would eventually end the short age of the open range. He made his last cattle drive in 1889.
In 1893, Adams left Texas for Colorado, attracted by rumors of gold at Cripple Creek. Like most would-be miners, he failed to make a fortune in the business. He eventually settled in Colorado Springs, where he remained for most of his life. While doing on a variety of jobs, Adams began to write stories based on his experiences as a Texas cowboy. In 1903, he found a publisher for his novel The Log of a Cowboy, a thinly disguised autobiography of his life on the plains. A fascinated public welcomed tales from the former cowboy, and Adams wrote and published four similar volumes in less than four years.
Adams distinguished himself from the majority of other western authors of the day with his meticulous accuracy and fidelity to the truth. As its name implied, The Log of a Cowboy was a day-by-day account of a cattle drive Adams had made from Texas to Montana. The book had little plot beyond the progress of the cattle herd toward Montana, and had none of the romantic excitement offered by less literal chroniclers of the West. Adams' self-avowed goal was to make his fiction indistinguishable from fact, and as one commentator has noted, "in this he succeeds only too well."
While a reader searching for a good story might find Adams' books somewhat dull today, historians and writers looking for an accurate depiction of the cowboy life have found them invaluable. Beyond his five best-known books, Adams also wrote two popular novels for juveniles later in his career. When he died in Colorado Springs in 1935, he left a number of unpublished manuscripts of novels, stories, and plays that historians of the Old West have also found useful.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 29, 2020
Easy-going story, through hard times and good, about cowboys on a big Texas ranch. They worked hard together and cared for each other like a family. The owner was always trying to get his ranch hands married off to some nice girls so there would be lots of babies for him to love. The story details interesting season after season of driving the cattle to various markets, how the changing weather affected the cattle and their income, cattle thievery, love stories, fights, shootings, saving up land credits to buy land, how the coming of the railroad changed ranching, and so much more.
November 4, 2017
Should be a movie. Such an interesting combination of prejudice and cooperation.
March 2, 2017
A classic western, written by someone who lived the life. This story takes place mostly on a large south Texas cattle ranch in the late 1870s and includes lots of details on raising cattle and horses. It is a book of its time, published in 1904, so does have views of the Tex-Mex locals that are quite prejudiced.
October 10, 2019
An AA. Western Action Adventure (ATM)
Aa. has penned a western action adventure about a western Texas rancher who has become known for his dances and parties across West Texas. He has invited numerous families to introduce the sons and daughters to each o t her to keep Texans alive. This is an excellent read for the genre.....DEHS
Aa. has penned a western action adventure about a western Texas rancher who has become known for his dances and parties across West Texas. He has invited numerous families to introduce the sons and daughters to each o t her to keep Texans alive. This is an excellent read for the genre.....DEHS
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews