Essential Things Every Cowboy Needed In Order to Survive In the Wild West

Most drovers on a trail drive didn’t have much to call their own. They may have owned a saddle, some tacking and a bedroll. Many did not even own a horse. On a trail drive, they would draw one, usually green broke out of the remuda.

But there were some things most had in order to survive and to make life a bit more bearable on the long trail drive. Rich M. in an article in “Off the Grid News” listed “15 Things Cowboys Carried With Them In The Wild West To Survive.”

I will make a short paraphrase of those 15 essential things he believed every cowboy needed . . .

1. A Good Knife: Every cowboy needed to have a good knife. Actually this was the only tool he carried with him. It was usually a mid-sized knife that he carried in a sheath and used it for everything from cutting wood to skinning game.
2.  A Gun and Some Ammo: A cowboy usually had only one firearm, either a pistol or a rifle. My grandfather who was a drover in his younger years carried a pistol; in fact, he gave me his holster, not his pistol. He did give his rifle to my older brother. Lots of cowboys carried rifles left over from the Civil War. Rifles (long guns) were better for shooting game and fighting off an Indian attack.
3. Fire-Starting Material: It was stored in a “tinder box.” The fire-starting material consisted of bits of tinder that he gathered along the trail. He’d also keep a piece of flint in it to produce a spark to get a fire going.  If he happened to have matches, they’d be in the tinder box, as well.
4. Canteen: The canteen was uised to hold water, usually about 2-1/2 quarts. It was covered with layers of scrap fabric, usually hand-sewn. By soaking the fabric in water, the canteen would keep the water cool.
5. Cookware: On the trail drive, the drover had no need for cookware. The cook took care of cooking and feeding the trail hands. But when on his own, some cookware was indeed an essential need. It didn’t consist of much, usually a small pot, a coffee pot, a tin plate and a cup.
6.  Food: Again, on a trail drive, no need to worry about food. But by himself, yeah! Having some food would be most welcome. Anytime a cowboy was alone, away from the bunk house or trail drive, he would try to keep a stash of food in his saddle bags: Some bacon (a favorite), biscuits or hard tack, coffee and sugar and dried fruit if he could get it.
7.  Fishing Line and Hook: Good to have if he was camping along side a river, lake or a mountain stream.
8. Piggin Strings: Piggin strings are thin strips of leather or rawhide. They were used for tying the legs of cattle when thrown for branding or castration. They were the cowboy’s equivalent to a piece of string used to tie and strap things together. Most cowboys kept a few pieces of piggin string in their pockets.
9. Rain Slicker: They’d keep their rain slicker tied behind their saddle, either in a small blanket roll or alone, where if a sudden storm came up, it was ready at hand. That way, they could put it on, without having to dismount.
10. Blankets: A cowboy needed blankets for keeping warm at nights, especially in the fall and winter. When on a trail drive, every morning he would roll up his blankets to store in the chuck wagon and retreive them again at bedtime. When traveling alone he would carry them in a roll tied behind his saddle.
11. Coat: Coats, just as today were seasonal. But cowboys, especially in mountainous areas would never leave the home ranch without a coat. When not wearing it, the cowboy would tie it with a piggin string on his saddle along with his slicker.
12.  Bandana: The bandana was a useful part of a cowboy’s gear. He used it as a dust filter over the nose and mouth; especially useful when “riding drag” behind a herd. But the bandana served many other purposes, as well, including protecting the neck from the sun, being a handy washcloth and serving as an emergency bandage.
13.  Tobacco: According to the author, Rich M., even cowboys who didn’t smoke tended to carry tobacco. Tobacco was the ultimate trade good. Offering someone a smoke was often the start of many a conversation, especially out on the trail.
14.  Books: Western author Louis L’amour often had the main character in his stories carrying books, especially books of poetry. Apparently, it was customary among the young cowboys, many of whom hailed form the East to carry books with them on the trail.  One book often carried in their saddle bag was a copy of the King James Bible.
15.  Extra Clothes: While they didn’t have an extensive wardrobe, most had a couple of changes of clothes, including one nice suit. They’d keep that in their blanket roll, taking it out for church and other important events.

One item that the author did not mention, which I believe was one of the most important things a cowboy needed was a hat. In fact, it was essential that every cowboy wear a hat. It offered him protection from the sun and heat, kept his head dry in a rain storm and warm in the winter. According to my grandfather, it was the first thing he put on in he morning and the last thing he took off at night.

So, rather than fifteen, there were at least sixteen essential things cowboys in the wild west carried with them to survive. You may think of others.

What are our essential needs for survival today? Well, much of the same. We need food, clothing, shelter and a way and means of providing them. Our needs are perhaps more sophisticated now than they were for the young drover back then.

But the greatest need we have, that the cowboy had, and for that matter any person from any age of history has is that of a personal relationship with God. Some of those things we see as essential, truthfully, we can get along without. But, can we truly get along without God? I think not. For you see, He is . . .

• Our Creator
• Our life-Giver
• Our Sustainer
• Our Only Hope for Now and Eternity – He is our one-and-only Essential Need!

“Ya see, God loves the world so much, that He gave His one and only son to die, so that every man, woman, boy and girl who believes in Him will not die, but will be a-livin’ forever”–John 3:16 (“The Gospel of John Cowboy Style”).