Читать книгу A Cowboy Of Convenience - Stacy Henrie - Страница 9

Dear Reader,

After reading a fascinating article about the history of dude ranching, I knew I wanted to make that a part of Vienna and West’s story. Thankfully they didn’t complain!

The Eaton brothers—Howard, Alden and Willis—who were originally from Pittsburgh, are credited with operating the first dude ranch near Medora, North Dakota, in the 1880s. The tale is that a guest suggested the brothers charge people room and board to come visit, and the idea of the dude ranch was born. Howard Eaton is said to have been the one to coin the word dude in reference to their guests who came from back east to visit the Custer Trail Ranch. And he did, in fact, take guests on pack trips to Yellowstone National Park. The descriptions of the ranch as well as its numbers and buildings are based on accounts of the place in 1901.

Visitors to the Custer Trail Ranch weren’t mail-order cowboys; a lot of them could ride well. However, they did tend to dress more extravagantly than regular cowboys. The idea of traveling back east to recruit guests and needing references from them is also true. The story about Teddy Roosevelt, who was a friend of the Eatons, and his robber bedfellow is supposedly true, as well. In 1904, the Eatons left North Dakota and moved their dude ranch to Wyoming. Their ranch is still in existence today.

It wasn’t until 1904 that Golden Hair, from the story of the three bears, was named Goldilocks. Also, of interesting note—for years, the tale was meant as a cautionary one to children about not snooping about where they shouldn’t.

Having already set one story in the beautiful countryside near Sheridan and the Big Horn Mountains, I was excited to set another there. I also enjoyed giving Vienna and West, two secondary characters from my last Love Inspired Historical The Rancher’s Temporary Engagement, their own happily-ever-after. It was a lot of fun to write their marriage of convenience story, as well.

My hope is that, like West, readers will also realize God doesn’t love us just because we do what He wants. He loves us unconditionally. I also hope that, like Vienna, readers will recognize their own inner strength and abilities, and that with God that strength can be magnified.

I love hearing from readers. You can contact me through my website at www.stacyhenrie.com.

All the best,

Stacy