Tracy Garrett

A New Research Source

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ruffled dress 19th centuryWhen I stumble (sometimes literally) on a new source for research on my time-period-of-choice, Victorian and the mid to late 1800s, I tend to glom on and drain the source dry. So far, this source just keeps on giving.

As a Cowboy Action Shooter, Recollections.biz is one of our best sources for period/reproduction clothing. And I was thrilled to discover they do a blog about period subjects: gloves, corsets, etc. This week the discussion is on ruffles. You heard me, ruffles! “From Bouillonné to Ruching – gather your ruffles!”

Not everything is appropriate to the time period I write, of course, but there are so many little gems of information here. A few of their recent blogs:

   Mantle or Mantel? Mantelet? It’s all Cloak to Me

   The Victorian Evolution of the Corsage

   Health Takeaways of the mid-Victorian Era


Since I can’t possibly share all the cool stuff they’ve published—and I’d be violating copyright if I did—why don’t you drop by and browse for yourself?  http://recollections.biz/blog/

Enjoy!

Playin’ Cowgirl

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GoodStageI find it hard to believe it’s been almost three years since dh and I decided to join the fun of Cowboy Action Shooting as part of the Single Action Shooting Society (SASS). It is an organization full of folks who love the Old West and want to relive just a little of it while making and enjoying new friends…

And shooting at steel targets and “making smoke” (that would be the cowboys and cowgirls who shoot black powder, like my dh to the right Dan-Black Smoke 2015-10-03there). We call that goin’ to the dark side. lol

We spent a few hours this weekend enjoying the sport in gorgeous February weather. I had so much fun, I had to share some pictures.

When we shoot, we divide into “posses” of 15-25 shooAtTheLoadingTableters. That way we have someone shooting, folks getting ready to shoot (at the loading table, like the pic at left; I’m the one of the left), folks unloading and clearing guns, folks spotting—counting misses and procedural errors and helping keep the sport safe, another picking up spent casing and someone else keeping score. Then we trade off until everyone has their turn at the firing line.

The stages each have a scenario, or shooting sequence, and they’re neverRemi the same. Boothill Slim wrote the stages for Saturday and, boy, did he keep us all concentrating!

And Remi here (to the right) is going to show up in an upcoming story. [He just laughed when I told him he’d be a hero, but that it was going to take some doing to bring him in line!]

Most of all, Cowboy Action Shooting is about the friends and sharing time doing something we all enjoy. These cowboys and cowgirls are some of my besties.

PosseIf there’s a SASS club in your area, (www.sassnet.com) go check them out. You don’t have to shoot, just put on some eye protection and ear protection and stand clear of the mayhem. You just might get hooked like I did.

 

 

Happy shooting—and reading!
Ozark Belle, aka Tracy

A New Brand of Cowpoke

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Every year, at the end of January, the Daytona International Speedway in Florida revs up with the sound of 50+ racecars going as fast as they can, trying to reach the checkered flag first—in a 24-hour race.

In years past, I’ve been in attendance at the track. This year I’m watching online and living vicariously through my dh and our friend, who are at the race. To me, the drivers of these amazing cars are the wild west cowboys of today, with some powerful rides. They hold “the reins” of a lot more than one horse-power, but their saddles are still made of leather. And they use jet fuel instead of oats and grass.

The cowboys and cowgirls of today’s car-racing world are as smart and savvy as their horse-riding predecessors. That said, I thought I’d share a few close-ups and sounds of this year’s race. [My thanks to dh and dear friend TG for the pics and videos.]

Here are a couple of this year’s new rides, the Lamborghinis, in the “corral.” In the corral

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This stallion is showing off his brands.

Showing his brand

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They run in all kinds of weather.

They run in all weather

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Threw a shoe (this mini’s hatch blew open)—on instant replay.

Threw a shoe on instant replay

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Put out to pasture [on display in the pit area].

Put out to pasture

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy Racing—and Reading!

OZARK BELLE & THE CROSSBOW

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crossbow-medieval   On a blustery, chilly November afternoon, dh and I were invited to a friend’s remote property for food, friends and some shooting. We took our cowboy guns, of course, but our host had a surprise:  A crossbow.

I’d seen pictures of a crossbow, and knew the basic concept of its function, but I’d never had an opportunity to pull the trigger on one. You know I was first in line to give it a try.

The trigger pull was much easier than I expected, and there wasn’t the recoil you expect of a weapon that can hurl a bolt (an arrow) an impressive distance. Of course, this was a modern crossbow, made of space age materials and mechanisms, in many ways far superior to its Medieval predecessors. Research beckoned.

“The earliest definitive evidence for Chinese crossbow use comes from manuscripts dating to the 4th and 3rd centuries BC in China, associated with the followers of Chinese philosophy Mohism, developed by a masun-tzun named Mozi. This philosophy, although it asserted a belief in universal love, also called for the development of a political structure within which there was no central authority other than Mozi’s writings. The Mohists developed many ideas on fortification, statecraft, as well as agricultural theories, and were soon hired as advisors for the leaders of warring states.”

Am I the only one who finds it “interesting” that a society expounding universal love became advisors on how to prepare for—and win–wars?

Beyond the writings of the Mohists, Sun Tzu’s book The Art of War, from approximately 400 BC, also refers to the use of crossbows. And Alexander the Great is known to have used crossbows for the siege of Tyre in 332 BC.

By the 1100s, the crossbow was considered by many to be a weapon of mass destruction. Not only was it was remarkably accurate and particularly deadly, worse, it allowed any lowly peasant to kill a high-born mounted knight with the simple squeeze of a trigger.

knightThough it took longer to reload than a longbow—a crossbow could manage only two volleys per minute while a bow could fire as many as 10—any soldier could be proficient with crossbow in a matter of days.

I had to dig, too, on whether this weapon, so commonly used across the pond, was brought here. According to Reginald and Gladys Laubin in AMERICAN INDIAN ARCHERY, VOLUME 4, there is some evidence of crossbows among the Cherokee & Potawatomi tribes.

“In 1927 a statement was obtained from Chief Simon Ka-qua-dos of the Wisconsin Potawatomis that as a young man he and his companions had made and used crossbows in hunting during the perod from about 1862 to 1867. He described the weapon as having a gun-shaped stock with an ordinary hunting bow mounted at a righTracyt angle across the stock at its forward end. The stock was grooved, and an ordinary arrow was laid in the groove. The bow was pulled back with both hands, and the string caught in a notch on the barrel from which it was released with a simple trigger device.

“It is almost certain that the Indians got the idea of a crossbow from the Whites, but how long ago is a difficult question. The Spanish and French explorers were armed with crossbows, and it is possible that the idea came to the Indians at that early time. Whether they used crossbows for the intervening three hundred years is anyone’s guess, but they certainly were not reported in any of the early writings.”

History aside, while I enjoyed my “shot,” I think I’ll stick to my Cowboy Action Shooting for fun. The bang is a lot louder.

Happy 2016, Everyone!
Tracy

FROZEN CHARLOTTE

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This is a repost from July, 2012. With the holiday weekend and my company, I failed to get a new post up. Enjoy!

Last time I told you about visiting the Arabia Steamboat Museum. During the tour I was enchanted by one tiny item. Not gold or diamonds or beautiful venetian glass. Discovered wrapped in wool and tucked at the bottom of a carpenter’s tool box was a porcelain or china doll only three inches tall – a Frozen Charlotte.

Manufactured from 1950-1920, the Frozen Charlotte dolls ranged in size from less than 1” to more than 18”. The one found on the Arabia had painted bonnet strings in a color similar to the garters to the left.

If your grandmother had a bathing baby doll in a little porcelain tub—that’s a type of Frozen Charlotte.

The doll was named for a popular American Folk Ballad, Fair Charlotte, which tells of a young girl (Charlotte) who froze to death on a sleigh ride because she refused to dress warmly. The Frozen Charlotte appeared as everything from a charm in a Christmas Pudding to the inhabitant of a doll house to the pampered favorite possession of many little girls.

Since our visit to the museum, I think of the Frozen Charlotte on the Arabia at odd moments. Who was it meant for? Was a hard-working carpenter who’d been earning money back East bringing a gift for his daughter in St. Joseph? Or perhaps a litle girl had wrapped her favorite doll in a bit of wool blanket and hid it at the bottom of her daddy’s tool box as a momento, a reminder that she was waiting for him at home.

 

The Art of Victorian Hair Wreaths

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hair wreath 1Since I’m writing this on Halloween (though you won’t see the blog for a couple of days) I want to introduce you to a slightly morbid Victorian art form – hair wreaths.

Not flower or leaf wreaths for your hair; not even an ornament made to wrap around a woman’s bun. I mean hair—woven into wreaths. Hair of a deceased family member or close friend, to be precise. A little creepy, isn’t it?!

In the Victorian age, the hair of the deceased was woven into a wreath to hang in the house as a memento, a form of mourning. And, of course, they didn’t stop with wreaths. Hair was made into wearable ornaments–bracelets, brooches, pins, watch chains, even buttons. Godey’s Lady’s Book even included instructions on this art form.

hair wreath 2Then Sear’s got into the act, advertising hair wreaths, with the caveat that the hair you receive may not be the hair you sent. With out the sentimental connection, the art died out.

To be fair, it wasn’t only for mourning that hair was clipped and woven. Hair was taken from living friends and relatives, too. According to Leila Cohoon, of Leila’s Hair Museum in Independence, Missouri, it was “a way of keeping track of families, before the camera was invented…” [See more at: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/11479#sthash.kwhXbEdo.dpuf; or http://www.leilashairmuseum.net/index.html.]

Now, I’m not creeped out by keeping hair. A snip of hair in a locket or a lock woven into a watch chain sounds normal, even sentimental. But a wreath to hang on the wall? Nope, couldn’t go there.

How about you? Creepy or creative?

Authors & Readers for Literacy

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B&R
As I write this blog, I’m sitting in the morning sun in Richardson, Texas, where I’ve traveled for the 10th Annual Buns & Roses Romance Tea for Literacy.

Ten years ago, a partnership was formed between the Richardson Library and romance authors in the Dallas area. Every year, a gathering would be hosted and funds raised to help the Richardson Adult Literacy Center provide English as a Second Language (ESL) classes for adults living in the Richardson area so they can gain better employment, help their children in school and become more involved community members.

Eleven Facts about Literacy in America
1) 16% of the world’s population is non-literate. Of those with low literacy skills, two-thirds are women.
2) Legal immigrants who are English proficient earn between tea13-24% more than immigrants who are not English proficient.
3) The effects of low literacy cost the U.S. more than $225 billion each year in non-productivity in the workforce and loss of tax revenue due to unemployment.
4) When immigrants have access to language and literacy instruction, they assimilate more quickly and effectively into communities and become more engaged in the economy.
5) Individuals at the lowest level of literacy have a higher rate of unemployment than the national average – 14.5 in 2011.
6) Among those with the lowest literacy rates, 43% live in poverty.
7) 75% of state prison inmates and 59% of federal prison inmates did not complete high school or can be classified as low literate.
8) 35% of immigrants make less than $25,000 a year. Most believe they cannot better their lives or get a better job until they improve their English.
9) Low literacy adds an estimated $230 billion to the country’s annual health care costs.
10) 19,050 of adults who live in the RALC service area don’t speak English well or at all.
11) 17,918 of residents who live in the RALC service area speak a language other than English at home and live below the poverty level.

Linda & TracyThis year I had the pleasure of sitting with fellow P&P Author Linda Broday!

I took part in the first couple of Buns & Roses events before I moved to Missouri. What has always struck me — and it’s no different this time, though I’m attending as a reader instead of an author table hostess — is the amazing energy and joy to be found in a room full of women talking about what they love. In this case, books and romance. And, over it all, is a fierce dedication to Adult Literacy, helping others learn to read so they can enjoy what we take for granted.

As I moved around the room, greeting friends I haven’t seen in years and making new ones, everyone smiles, laughs and talks about books. What do you write? What’s your new favorite book? What are you reading now? It’s amazing.

As a writer, I love that people enjoy reading all those words I struggled over, getting them just right before sending my book into the world. As a reader, getting to hear of authors I’ve not yet discovered and books that left a lasting impression with someone is just as fun.

So– What’s your new favorite book?

A River's Bend Duo
A RIVER’S BEND DUO

Wanted: The Sheriff

Martha Bittner may be considered a spinster at twenty-seven, but she’s not planning to stay that way. For four years, she’s wanted the sheriff of River’s Bend, Missouri, to notice her as more than a friend and a really good cook. With the first annual spring dance only weeks away, Martha decides to announce her intentions — and declares the sheriff a wanted man.

Sheriff Matthew Tate always thought he was better off a bachelor. Growing up in Boston society, where marriage is a business transaction and wealth his greatest asset, he’s learned to distrust all women’s intentions. None of them even catch his eye anymore — until pretty Martha Bittner tells him exactly what she wants… and he wonders why he ever resisted capture.

No Less Than Forever

Doctor Franz Bittner is satisfied with his life as it is. He has a good practice in a place where he is respected, in spite of his German birth. He has good friends and enough income to provide him with a few comforts. A wife would only complicate things. Then a tiny blond stranger is pulled from the river and everything changes. With one smile she captures his attention—and steals his heart.

Rebekah Snow Redmann barely survived her abusive husband’s attack. Though she was given to him to pay her father’s debts, she’d rather die than go back. Then she ends up in the care of the handsome local doctor and he stitches up more than her wounds—he mends her soul. With him, she discovers everything that she believes she can never have…a love that will last forever.

Visit me at www.TracyGarrett.com, www.Twitter.com/TGarrett_Author, or www.Facebook.com/TracyGarrett.Author

1887 Lever-Action Shotgun

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IMG_0074

By the late 19th century, the Winchester Repeating Arms Company was well known for their lever-action firearms. Though designer John Browning—who designed most of the lever-action rifles that “won the west”—recommended the new shotgun be pump-action, Winchester management wanted to capitalize on their previous success. Early brand recognition!  The result?  The Winchester Model 1887 Lever-Action Shotgun. [That’s mine, a reproduction, pictured above.]

That brand recognition even extends into modern-day Hollywood — Arnold Schwarzenegger carried a Model 1887 in The Terminator.

The Model 1887 loads from the top or breech (picture on right). It had a magazine tube that would hold six shells plus one IMG_0077more in the chamber. Patterned after their lever action rifles, the shotgun lever design included an internal safety innovation that minimized the possibility of accidentally firing: the firing pin cannot strike the primer of the shell until the breech block is completely closed. That means the shot will go down the barrel and not up into the shooter’s face.

IMG_0078
The lever is exactly that—a lever. [See picture on the left] Opening it or pushing it down ejects the spent shell and moves another shell from the tube into firing position.

When a man or woman could carry multiple weapons that used the same cartridges, that meant more variety of firearms and less weight in lead to haul around. Winchester produced lever-action rifles that could fire several pistol-caliber cartridges (from right to left in the picture): .32-20, .38-40 & .44-40, all worked in FullSizeRenderthe Model 1873 rifle; and they made the Model 1886 rifle to use higher powered big game cartridges like the .45-70, the original “buffalo” cartridge.

Since shotgun shells of the time used black powder, the Model 1887 was designed and chambered for these less powerful shotshells. And, while both 10 and 12-gauge model 1887s were offered [two left shells above, respectively], it was quickly realized the 1887 wasn’t strong enough for the more powerful smokeless powder shells. That prompted a redesign that resulted in the Model 1901—but that’s another blog.

Here’s a short video showing how the Model 1887 breech-loading rolling block lever-action shotgun functions. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZE9WD9Fihks

And, of course: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9SpHLyZuP0

Tracy Garrett

PRPTracy Garrett Duo Web

 

 

Available Now ~ “A River’s Bend Duo,” featuring two short stories, WANTED:  THE SHERIFF & NO LESS THAN FOREVER.

A River’s Bend Duo

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Tracy Garrett Duo Web

I’m really excited to have these two stories released in one volume, since it’s how I think of them–intertwined.  Originally released in the Lassoing a Groom & Lassoing a Bride anthologies, these stories take place at the same time—exactly the same time.

That timing, I admit, was an accident.  I was writing WANTED: THE SHERIFF, Matt & Martha’s story, and suddenly, in the middle of it, a young woman was brought to Martha’s brother, the doctor, for treatment.  While Matt & Martha were busy making calf eyes at each other, Dr. Franz discovered the love of his life. And pretty Rebekah Snow Redman turned out to be a fireball in spite of her fragile appearance.

 

 

A RIVER’S BEND DUO
Wanted: The Sheriff

Martha Bittner may be considered a spinster at twenty-seven, but she’s not planning to stay that way. For four years, she’s wanted the sheriff of River’s Bend, Missouri, to notice her as more than a friend and a really good cook. With the first annual spring dance only weeks away, Martha decides to announce her intentions — and declares the sheriff a wanted man.

Sheriff Matthew Tate always thought he was better off a bachelor. Growing up in Boston society, where marriage is a business transaction and wealth his greatest asset, he’s learned to distrust all women’s intentions. None of them even catch his eye anymore — until pretty Martha Bittner tells him exactly what she wants… and he wonders why he ever resisted capture.

No Less Than Forever

Doctor Franz Bittner is satisfied with his life as it is. He has a good practice in a place where he is respected, in spite of his German birth. He has good friends and enough income to provide him with a few comforts. A wife would only complicate things. Then a tiny blond stranger is pulled from the river and everything changes. With one smile she captures his attention—and steals his heart.

Rebekah Snow Redmann barely survived her abusive husband’s attack. Though she was given to him to pay her father’s debts, she’d rather die than go back. Then she ends up in the care of the handsome local doctor and he stitches up more than her wounds—he mends her soul. With him, she discovers everything that she believes she can never have…a love that will last forever.

Tracy Garrett
www.TracyGarrett.com

CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS IN JULY WITH PRAIRIE ROSE PUBLICATIONS!

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Cheryl2041webHi everyone! Ready for some great western historical romance reading at some fantastic bargain prices? Well, let me tell you about Prairie Rose Publications’ 2nd annual CHRISTMAS IN JULY event!

Christmas in July is a chance for us to be able to showcase our authors’ short stories from the past year’s anthologies as single sell stories. Many of the stories are Christmas stories, but there are others, as well, and also for the duration of our Christmas in July event some of our full length novels will be reduced to only .99!

Our Christmas in July event will start on July 24 (this Friday) and will last through the next Friday, the 31st. One fun thing we always try to do when we have these sales is a Facebook party called a “FANDANGO” for our authors and readers to connect and get to know one another. During this year’s Christmas in July, our Fandango will take place on Monday, the 27th and Tuesday, the 28th. We decided on those days because Jacquie Rogers, one of our authors who is always so wonderful at setting up these shindigs for us, has a birthday on the 27th, and mine is on the 28th!

Here’s a collection of the 21 short stories and duos that will be available, but we’ll have more books available at “Christmas in July sale prices”!

PRPChristmas+in+July+2015 FINALI’ll post the links below so everyone can sign up, if you’d like to attend, and come join us for two afternoons/evenings of lots of fun, chatter, and PRIZES! What is Christmas without gifts?

Here’s a sneak peek at our fillies who will be participating with some of their stories in the Prairie Rose Publications Christmas in July event!

 

PRPThe Last 3 Miles Kathleen 2 WebKathleen R. Adams The Last Three Miles

When an accident leaves Hamilton Hollister convinced he’ll never be more than half a man, he abandons construction of a railway spur his lumber mill needs to survive.

 

Believing no woman shackled by social convention can be complete, railroad heiress Katherine Brashear refuses to let the nearly- finished track die. The magic of Christmas in a small Texas town may help them bridge the distance…if they follow their hearts down The Last Three Miles.

 

A PRAIRIE ROSE DUO–TWO STORIES UNDER ONE COVER!

PRPTanya Sisters Double 2 WebTanya Hanson: Sisters: Her Hurry-Up Husband

Prim and proper socialite Elspeth Maroney flees from an indiscretion to the Wild West of Colorado as a mail order bride. She doesn’t plan to stay long, only a month. Rancher Hezekiah Steller needs a wife quick to get himself an heir, but what will the stagecoach deliver to his doorstep?

Their worlds collide deliciously until Ellie must confess her mistakes. Will Hez still want her tomorrow?

Her Thief of Hearts

To escape her domineering mother, Omaha socialite Judith Maroney heads to her sister’s Colorado ranch on the morning train…a train that’s ambushed by the very cowboy who stole her heart on her last visit!

Taking on the disguise of his outlaw twin brother, Tremaine Heisler holds up a train to retrieve a family treasure—and finds his gun pointed at the woman he loves. Is there any way out for either of them?

A PRAIRIE ROSE DUO–TWO STORIES UNDER ONE COVER!

PRPTracy Garrett Duo WebTracy Garrett—A RIVER’S BEND DUO

Wanted: The Sheriff

Martha Bittner may be considered a spinster at twenty-seven, but she’s not planning to stay that way. For four years, she’s wanted the sheriff of River’s Bend, Missouri, to notice her as more than a friend and a really good cook. With the first annual spring dance only weeks away, Martha decides to announce her intentions — and declares the sheriff a wanted man.

Sheriff Matthew Tate always thought he was better off a bachelor. Growing up in Boston society, where marriage is a business transaction and wealth his greatest asset, he’s learned to distrust all women’s intentions. None of them even catch his eye anymore — until pretty Martha Bittner tells him exactly what she wants… and he wonders why he ever resisted capture.

No Less Than Forever

Doctor Franz Bittner is satisfied with his life as it is. He has a good practice in a place where he is respected, in spite of his German birth. He has good friends and enough income to provide him with a few comforts. A wife would only complicate things. Then a tiny blond stranger is pulled from the river and everything changes. With one smile she captures his attention—and steals his heart.

Rebekah Snow Redmann barely survived her abusive husband’s attack. Though she was given to him to pay her father’s debts, she’d rather die than go back. Then she ends up in the care of the handsome local doctor and he stitches up more than her wounds—he mends her soul. With him, she discovers everything that she believes she can never have…a love that will last forever.

PRPThese Rough Dreams Cheryl WebCheryl Pierson: These Rough Dreams

When Southern socialite Gabrielle Mason discovers she’s pregnant, she takes her future into her own hands. She has her family name to consider, and a husband is what she needs. She answers an ad for a mail-order bride in Indian Territory. But the man who proposes isn’t the man she ends up marrying.

Johnny Rainbolt is not a family man by any stretch of the imagination…but Fate is about to give him no choice. His late sister’s three children will be arriving on the next stage, and he has no idea what to do with them. When cultured Gabby Mason is left waiting for her prospective groom at the stage station, Johnny sees a way to solve everyone’s problems.

Some dreams get off to a rough start. A mail-order marriage is only the beginning. When one of the children is stolen, Johnny and Gabby are forced to depend on one another in an unimaginable circumstance that could turn tragic… or show them what might become of THESE ROUGH DREAMS.

These are just a few of the wonderful stories that will be available on the 24th!

Visit our website at http://www.prairierosepublications.com on July 24 to see the unveiling of over 21 wonderful books, duos, and short stories that we’ll have available for Christmas in July!

To join up for the 2015 Christmas in July PRP Fandango at Facebook, go here and click “JOIN”—this event will start both the 27th and the 28th at 5:00 EASTERN STANDARD TIME, so don’t forget to make the adjustment for whichever time zone you live in! I promise, you won’t want to miss out on one minute of the fun!

http://www.facebook.com/events/1608290686092159/

We look forward to seeing you there!

Petticoats & Pistols