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Biography of Andy Adams

Andy Adams (1859-1935), American cowboy and author wrote The Log of a Cowboy: A
Narrative of the Old Trail Days (1903);

My worst trouble was getting away from home on the morning of starting.
Mother and my sisters, of course, shed a few tears; but my father, stern and
unbending in his manner, gave me his benediction in these words: "Thomas
Moore, you're the third son to leave our roof, but your father's blessing goes
with you. I left my own home beyond the sea before I was your age." And as
they all stood at the gate, I climbed into my saddle and rode away, with a lump
in my throat which left me speechless to reply.
The Log is Adams' best-known work and still in print today. Based on Adams' involvement with a
five-month drive of over three thousand head of cattle from Brownsville to Montana in 1882, it is
said to be one of the most authentic records of the "Wild West" days in cattle country.
Andy Adams was born in Thornecreek Township, Indiana on 3 May 1859. His pioneering parents
were Andrew Adams and Elizabeth ne Elliot. Young Andy was of a tall and robust physique, and
he grew up with an appreciation for his fathers' occupation as cattleman and farmer. He and his
brothers assisted their father and learned all about the business. After six years of school, at the
age of fifteen, Adams left home.
He soon became involved in the mule and horse-trading business in 1882 San Antonio, Texas,
which took him to many parts of the state and country including Dodge City in Kansas, and the
Cherokee Outlet in Oklahoma. For ten years the bulk of his time was spent in the dust and
mayhem of cattle driving on the western trail. His attentions next focused on the mining boom
which took him to Cripple Creek, Colorado. He ventured to Nevada and Kentucky as well in
search of gold, though the venture failed and he began to seriously put his pen to paper and write
about his adventures.
A prospective publisher suggested to Adams that he attempt a fictional account of cowboy life,
and thus the idea for The Log of a Cowboy: A Narrative of the Old Trail Days was born. It was so
successful and convincing that many believed it to be an autobiography, though of course Adams
himself drew heavily from his own exciting life to fill its pages. A Texas Matchmaker (1904)
and The Outlet (1905) followed. Cattle Brands (1906) is a collection of short stories. Reed
Anthony, Cowman: An Autobiography (1907) was followed by Wells Brothers: The Young Cattle
Kings (1911) and The Ranch on the Beaver: A Sequel to Wells Brothers (1927). Specifically
aimed at the young boys among his readership it is the story of two orphans' rise to fortune and
success in the cattle industry. A number of his works were lauded in England.
Andy Adams died on 26 September 1935 in Colorado Springs, and lies buried in the Evergreen
Cemetery of El Paso County, Colorado, USA. He never married and left no children. The

Colorado Springs Public Library and State Historical Society of Colorado in Denver maintains the
bulk of his papers and manuscripts, donated by his nephew.
Biography written by C.D. Merriman for Jalic Inc. Copyright Jalic Inc 2006. All Rights Reserved.
The above biography is copyrighted. Do not republish it without permission.
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Andy Adams

Fiction

A Texas Matchmaker

Reed Anthony: Cowman

The Log of a Cowboy

The Outlet

Wells Brothers

Short Stories

"Bad Medicine"

A College Vagabond

A Question of Possession

A Winter Round-Up

Around the Spade Wagon

At Comanche Ford

Drifting North

In the Hands of His Friends

Rangering

Seigerman's Per Cent

The Double Trail

The Passing of Peg-Leg

The Ransom of Don Ramon Mora

The Story of a Poker Steer

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