Nothing but Prairie and Sky: Life on the Dakota Range in the Early Days (Western Frontier Library)

By Walker D. Wyman and Bruce Siberts

Book Overview

The true story of Bruce Siberts, father of an Altus resident in 1969-1970. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 080612122X
• ISBN13: 9780806121222
• Release Date: January 1988
• Publisher: Univ of Oklahoma Pr
• Length: 248 Pages
• Weight: 0.61 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.8" x 0.8" x 5.0"

Customer Reviews

Nothing but Prairie and Sky

This is the history of the years (1890-1906) that Bruce Siberts spent as a cowboy and rancher in central South Dakota. Walker D. Wyman edited oral and written material obtained from Mr. Siberts between 1945 and 1950. The account is more open and frank than other personal histories from the Dakotas and Montana during that time. It is an important part of the history of the plains. Bruce Siberts was in South Dakota during a period of great change. When he arrived, a few cattlemen were running large herds on open range. Mr. Siberts was one of the first of the wave of homesteaders that ultimately closed off the open range. Early in his tenancy, he was a small operator running a few head of cows and working at various jobs wherever he could. By the time he left, Mr. Siberts had a large and profitable horse operation that depended on the open range. It was also a time of personal change for Siberts. Initially he was a greenhorn criticized for riding mares during a roundup. Before he left, he was boss of a roundup. It was a hard life. Wind, cold, and severe winters were the rule. Like most of the others living in the area, Mr. Siberts had a dugout, a small cabin dug into a hillside with a sod roof and no floor. He was unmarried and it was a long way to any white neighbors. Many of the white people in the country were outlaws. A constant fear was that injury or loss of your horse would leave you unable to get to help in time to save your life. Few people had any money, and a dollar per day was good wages if you could find work. It was also a time of change for the Native American population. There were many Sioux; they outnumbered the permanent white population. The Indians had admitted defeat in their struggles against the whites and were reluctantly moving to reservations. Whether living on the reservation or not, the Indians were dependent on the U.S. agencies for food since the buffalo were gone and the government didn't allow the Indians to keep their guns. The relationship between whites and the Indians is an interesting part of the book. Both lived in similar conditions. Early on, a rider arriving at a home received free food and lodging, regardless of whether the rider or the homeowner was white or Indian. Later on, as more whites arrived and the reservation system degraded the Indians, there was greater discrimination against the Indians. There were also many half-breeds in the area and their culture was different from either of their parent races. By far the weakest part of the book is the foreword and the preface. Mr. Siberts didn't have anything to do with writing these; but, ironically, the authors of those sections are the names on the book cover. Both accounts are slightly disparaging of Mr. Siberts and his narrative. They raise a question as to its authenticity. That is unfair. Some of the tales may reflect nearly fifty years between the happening and the telling. Some may have evolved slightly through ma

A must for Western history readers

This is a true story of a man in the South Dakota territory between end of the Indian Wars and the settling of the homesteaders. This will fill the void that this time period is seldom written about.